


You and Me against the Galaxy

by EyesOfHorus82



Series: You and Me against the Galaxy [3]
Category: The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Adorable Baby Yoda (The Mandalorian TV), Clan Leader Din Djarin, Crying, Dark Thoughts, Depression, Din Djarin Whump, Family, Family Fluff, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Grogu - Freeform, Hurt Din Djarin, Major Character Injury, ManDadlorian, Mental Health Issues, Series, Soft Din Djarin, Tears
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:14:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 28,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27595996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EyesOfHorus82/pseuds/EyesOfHorus82
Summary: After Din reconsidered his way of life and after the encounter with Bo-Katan, he has a choice to make. Is he going to stay on the way of the Mandalore or is he going to find his own way?The next installment to my Story 'A Stirring of Memories'
Series: You and Me against the Galaxy [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2017307
Comments: 68
Kudos: 157





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay I decided to start a series with the story 'A Stirring of Memories' as part one. This story might be not updated regularly because it kind of depends on the shows story line. But I just had to write it off my chest and I hope you enjoy it. 😊

Din couldn't sleep that night, too many thoughts roamed in his head. He felt the heavy weight, which clutched his heart growing heavier with every hour passing. He was so close to accomplish his task. Giving the child back to the jedi was his imposed quest he had to finish by creed. 

The creed. Din had spent many years of his life following its rules, almost blindly trusting it would be the only way to live. But since he had met Bo-Katan his beliefs and staunchness started to crumble. First he was shocked they removed their helmets in front of him and he left them in disrespect. But after kidnapping the imperial ship, they gained his trust. Since then, he reconsidered some decisions and opinions about his life. 

Since that day, the weight of his helmet also had grown heavier and he caught himself by the feeling of being imprisoned by the beskar steel. Din had always told himself this is the way, but things had changed now. Was this really his way or a way he was just following because he was expected to? Mando sighed loudly, he was tired. He felt the small breaths from the child against his covered neck. 

Since his ship had turned into an asylum for sea creatures, they had no choice but to sleep outside. The night was cool and damp, causing the kid to shiver a little while sleeping on Din's cold beskar chest plate. Din carefully put him on his lap and removed this part of his armor, so he could provide the baby with his body heat. Leaning back against the tree trunk behind him, he picked the kid from his lap and put him back on his chest, where the little one instantly snuggled up in his sleep. "I've got you kid, I'll keep you warm…..always." Din whispered, lifted his helmet and kissed his fuzzy head before the beskar covered his face again. 

Mando leaned his head back and felt some tears in the corners of his eyes. The kid was the only family he had and giving him to Ahsoka would rip him apart from the only living being he loved with all of his heart. Din sighed again, he knew he had no choice, he had to do this, he was expected to do this. He was destined by the creed although he already knew it would kill him inside. Mando suddenly was ripped from his thoughts by a low coo, the child shifted position and his small three fingered hands tenderly kneading on his chest. 

Din lowered his head, the cold beskar cheek gently nudging the small fuzzy head. He felt a tear escaping his eye. Slowly but clearly he realized, he might not be able to finish his quest, now even thinking about it caused him actual physical pain. The kid was his life now but refusing to get this task done would violate the creed. "I don't know what to do, I don't wanna lose you." Din sobbed and the weight on his chest grew even heavier. He knew he had to make a choice, the kid or the creed. 

The night gradually turned into dawn and the first glimpse of sunlight grazed the horizon. The forest of Corvus was quiet and in a few hours, he'd be looking for Ahsoka, would he? Din felt his head pounding from sleep deprivation. Suddenly he heard the child yawning and he instantly looked at him. Big sleepy eyes were staring back at him, with a gaze he had never seen before. The kid sensed his distress, Din was aware of the child knowing about his plans since he told him to meet another friend last evening. The kid's reaction was clear back then. 

"Kid, I….." he stammered and his glance fell on the Mudhorn signet on his shoulder pauldron. A clan of two, temporarily. Din swallowed thickly, he knew no matter what choice he made, his life would change completely. "Bah?" the kid cooed, trying to draw attention at him. "What is it, Kid?" Din whispered hoarsely, he didn't even put any effort in hiding his emotions anymore. The kid closed his eyes for a moment and Mando had the impression the little one tried to tell him something. 

Suddenly, his small hands reached for the edges of the helmet, almost trying to push it up. "Bah, Bah" the kid cooed more sternly but Din grabbed his tiny hands. But he didn't know what to say. More than ever before he felt the urge to pull off his mask and just be a human for a second. The Child looked at him intensely, his forehead wrinkling in concentration. "Pah Bah." he chirped and suddenly reached for the Mudhorn signet. 

Din was getting confused. "pahba" the kid cooed again, pointing to the signet. "What do you want to tell me, kid? “ Mando asked, his heart now hammering in his chest. The kid looked down on his hands and suddenly tilted his head up, Din felt his glance piercing him through his visor. "Pa….Pa...Papa!“ the kid stammered suddenly and Din's heart skipped some beats."Papa, Papa." the little one chirped happily and snuggled his head against Din's chest. Now, the mandalorian's choice was made. With a deep breath, he pulled his helmet off his head and kissed the kids forehead, who smiled from ear to ear, his little hands instantly exploring Din's face. He laughed and hugged the little one. "Do you want to stay with me?“ he asked the kid, who instantly wrapped his short arms around his neck."This is the way. This is our way." Din said, determined, getting up from the ground and watching the sunrise together with his son as a whole new Mandalorian.


	2. Chapter 2

Din felt nothing but relief, it was like, he was born a new, like a huge weight dropped off his chest. The kid also felt his new kind of spirit and felt more happy too. The whole day, they spent cleaning the Razor Crest and in the end it was almost back to normal, except the damage that couldn’t be repaired on Trask. Din tried to fix it himself, but soon he had to admit, he needed help and probably a huge amount of money. 

“I suppose, it’s best we head back to Nevarro to get a few jobs, so I can pay Peli for a complete once-over.” he said and the child nodded approvingly. So Din took place in the pilots seat, starting the engines. “Please, don’t fail me…” Mando pleaded as he felt the vibrations, but after a few minutes, the Crest finally made its way off world. Relieved, Din leaned back on the seat, pulling his helmet off and rubbing his tired eyes. 

The kid cooed at him. “Didn’t get any sleep last night.” the mandalorian explained and got up from his seat. He wanted to do a quick check on the lower section of the ship. Everything was still a mess and Din was surprised by the Razor Crests durability. But regardless, they couldn’t keep flying around like this. Yawning, he opened a drawer, where he kept their food, but there were only some individually wrapped cookies left, which he took. Since he hadn’t eaten since yesterday morning, his stomach felt like it was digesting itself. Din smiled by the fact, he was no longer forced to have his meals alone.

He headed back to the cockpit, where the kid was impatiently waiting for him. After he unwrapped one of the cookies, Din handed one over to the kid. Then Mando took one himself and nudged his cookie with the kid. “Cheers, kid. This is our first meal together.” he said and ate it all up. The little one was confused for a moment, but then greedily gulped his down as well, chirping happily after that. It took them almost two hours to arrive at Nevarro and Din felt nervousness rising within him. Would he tell the Armorer that he abandoned their way of creed? Or would he keep it to himself? He had no idea how they would react. 

While landing,the ship stuttered and made some sounds, which made Din’s stomach twisting. Slowly he reconsidered the idea of getting to Tattoine for repair, he knew there once was a mechanic hangar for guild members. Greef Karga would probably know, if it was still in service. After they safely landed, Mando put his helmet back on and brushed some cookie crumbles from his lap. After picking up the kid, he climbed down the ladder, while the ramp lowered slowly. A familiar face came to his sight..

“I thought, we never get to see you guys again. Welcome back.” Cara called and waved at them. Din put the kid on the ground, who quickly waddled, almost stumbled out of the ship to be scooped up by Cara to get some snuggles. “I missed you, little one!” she said cheerfully and kissed the kid on the cheek. “Also good to see you in one piece again, Mando” she added and gave him a brief hug, which he oddly returned. “Good to see you too, how are things here on Nevarro?” he asked and crossed his arms over his chest. “Well, the guild is running very well, we’ve got plenty of work to do and the city is blooming again after the Imps were gone. So everythings fine, how are you?” the former shock trooper asked. 

“Well, as you probably noticed, the Crest isn’t having the best of it’s days and I need to get some credits to get it fixed properly. That’s why I’m here.” Din explained after he had decided to keep the other news to himself for now. “I bet you will be glad to hear, some of your people have returned here. Not many, only a few, well the only few I’ve seen to be honest. But I’m pretty sure, you’re gonna pay them a visit anyway?” Cara asked and Din slightly was caught off guard. “Probably…” he replied wryly, picked up the kid and went ahead. 

He and Cara made their way into Greef’s new office. “Bless my old, dry eyes! Mando, glad to see you’re back my friend.” the older man called and shook Din’s hand. “Yeah, nice to see you too. I’m looking for some work to get my ship repaired. Am I still in the game?” Din asked as the three sat down on the table. “Of course, you were my best hunter, there’s plenty of work I can offer to you. I bet you and the kid need some credits for your journey right?” Karga asked and pulled out some fobs from his pocket. “Yes, my ship is damaged and needs a complete once-over. I tried to fix it myself, but even my efforts are limited in some ways.” Mando explained and took a look at the fobs. 

“I understand, we have some mechanics over here, not specialists but they could have a look at your ship for a pretty valuable price. I think bounty hunting could be a little complicated with your little charge. Did you make any progress in finding his people?” Greef asked and patted the kids fuzzy head. “No…” Din mumbled and the child's head turned at him, but before he was able to protest, Mando gave him a hand sign to stay calm. “Alright, it’s getting late. The office is closed, I’m gonna book you a hotel room for tonight on my bill, Mando. Take it as a welcome-back-gift.” Karga said and stretched his limbs. “Yes, let’s talk tomorrow.” Din said and yawned, now he felt how tired he actually was. 

“Alright, see you tomorrow.” Greef said and waved as they left the office. Suddenly, the child chirped at Din, rubbing his belly. “Oh, you’re hungry?” he asked and picked him up. “Come on, Din. Let’s get the kid something to eat and talk a little, how about that?” Cara said and pointed to the new established bar. The mandalorian nodded and the trio entered the dimly lit room. It was pretty busy here and Cara chose a more private corner of the bar. “Hey, Cara!” the bartender greeted her, she must be here quite often, Din concluded. “Have a seat.” she said and sat down herself. Din looked around and watched the people, no one seemed to be suspicious here. 

The waiter came a few minutes after they had taken a seat. “What can I get you guys?” he asked and pulled out a tablet to pick up the orders. “I’m gonna get a mug of spotchka and a bantha steak, medium rare, please.” the former shock trooper ordered and the waiter turned to Din. “Stew for the kid….. And the same, she ordered for me.” he said hesitantly. “Alright, I bring it to you as fast as possible.” the waiter said and left them. “Now I’m curious how you’re gonna eat this thing with your bucket on. Or did you build in some kind of flippable visor?” Cara chuckled, but Din remained silent. 

Twenty minutes later, the waiter returned with their food. Cara grabbed her cutlery but stopped to watch Din intensely. “Now, go ahead. Entertain me.” she chuckled but he just sighed. “Cara, there is some news I didn’t tell you yet, but….” he explained and pulled the helmet off his head. The rebel trooper's jaw dropped as well as her knife and fork. Din smirked at the face she was making. “How… What did you do? You need to tell me what happened.” she gasped and took a huge sip from her mug of spotchka. 

Din started telling her everything, that he’s keeping the kid and he chose another way to live. He told her about Bo-Katan and that he actually grew up without knowing, he was raised by a group of religious zealots. Cara did not say a single word, only eating and listening to him. As Din was finished, they were almost finished eating. “Wow, just wow. This is a hell of a change. And all for the boy? That’s some kind of affection, that even makes my heart melt.” she admitted and ordered the second round of spotchka. “Yes, it was a hard decision at first but now, I feel like a new man. All these years, I’ve kept my face hidden because I was told, this is the way. Now I know better. I can be a mandalorian and a father to the kid. I can raise him without being caged by beskar. And it feels good, it feels right.” he said and ran his hand through his dark hair, fluffing it up even more. 

Cara smiled. “I’m so glad you found your own way. When I think back at the time, where you were dying in the Cantina, I was so mad at you and I was so close just ripping this thing off your head.” she said and raised her glass. “Cheers to you and your new way of life. I think you made the right decision.” They clinked glasses and soon after the third round of spotchka was ordered. The evening turned into night and new people entered and exited the bar. But Din and Cara were so busy talking, they didn’t notice someone was watching them. After the third round of spotchka, Din gradually started to feel the effects of the drink. But Cara felt great and ordered her fourth glass. “You know….. don’t get me wrong, but now I can see your face, I can say it was almost a crime to hide yourself behind a mask with your looks.” she chuckled and Din felt his cheeks flushing a little. 

The kid also had a blast and after the third bowl of stew, he almost fell into a food coma. “Alright, I think it’s time to get to the hotel.” Din said and yawned as well. “Yeah, get some sleep. You look pretty tired too.” Cara said and after Din paid for their food and put his helmet back on, he left along with the little one. The shock trooper stayed behind for one last drink, or more. The nights were cold on Nevarro and Din shivered as they left the bar. Mando was walking down the dusty street and the kid happily waddled beside him but suddenly stopped as he saw someone blocking their way. Din’s heart stopped for a moment. “Paz?” he asked as he recognized his old tribe member. 

“Din…. I see you are back. Come, we need to talk.” the tall mandalorian said and led them into a narrow and dimly lit side street. “What do you want? Are you back with the Covert?” Din asked, trying to get any information, but the other mandalorian remained silent. In the backyard of the bar, they stopped and Paz leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. Din instantly had a gnawing feeling in his stomach. “You’re back with the foundling?” he asked and watched Mando intensely. “Yes…. couldn’t figure out where his home planet is…… also, I decided to adopt him as my own. The kid would refuse to leave me anyway, so he’s gonna stay with me.” Din explained but he only elicited a grunt from the tall mandalorian. 

“But that’s not how the creed works, Din. He does not belong to you. You must return him, no matter what he wants. This is the way” Paz growled, sounding more threatening. Din sighed. “This was the way. But not anymore. I’ve decided to turn to another path, Paz. Do you know Bo-Katan? She`s a mandalorian by blood, she fought in the purge and she told me a few interesting things about our tribe. Things no one ever felt to be important enough to tell me.” Din growled back. “You didn’t need to know that, there is only one way….. I’ve seen you… taking off your helmet in front of others and putting it back on. You’re a traitor, Din Djarin.” the tall mandalorian said and stepped closer. 

Cautiously, Din put his hand on his blaster. “Religious zealot was a quite accurate description. I chose another way, why do you even care? I’m done with the old way. I want to have a life with my foundling, my son. No one can change my mind.” Mando hissed as the taller mandalorian came even closer. The kid was scared and grabbed hold on Din’s calf. “Then you leave me no choice…. Get him!!” Paz screamed and two other mandalorians, which were hidden behind a dark corner, leaped at Din. Surprised by the sudden attack, he almost stumbled over the kid. He drew his blaster and readied his whistling birds. “Take cover, kid.” he mumbled and the little one hid behind a trash bin next to them. 

Din’s heart was hammering in his chest, even he would have trouble fighting three other mandalorians and keeping the kid safe. But before he could think of a plan, they began shooting at him. Thanks to his beskar, most of the shots were deflected. He fought back, shooting one on them in the gut and burning the others arm. But suddenly, Din heard a squeak and as he turned his head to the side, he saw Paz grabbing the kid, holding a knife at his throat. “This little brat is the reason the covert almost got wiped out, he is the reason you’ve gone insane. I’d better take care of him myself!” the tall mandalorian hissed and tightened the grip around the kid, which made him yell in pain. “No, kid!” Din yelled and aimed at Paz. But the kid reacted fast and used his powers to choke the tall guy. 

Grasping his throat, he dropped him and the little one rushed at Din to be picked up. The other mandalorians stood there in shock. 

“Now, get away from me” Din hissed and aimed at the others, causing them to back up. But all of the sudden, Paz leaped at Mando with his vibroblade in his hand. “Let’s kill the brat first.” he growled but Din reacted quickly enough to pull the kid out of his aim. But the consequences were the knife now dug deep into his stomach, right below his beskar chest plate. Din screamed in pain, almost dropping the child. Paz’ knife stuck in his body up to the hilt. The pain was overwhelming but he tried to stay strong. With one hand, Din held the kid and with the other hand he braced himself against the wall behind him, while blood was soaking his flight suit. 

“Now….” Paz grunted and nodded at his mates. With brutal force, they brought Din to his knees, pulling the helmet off his head. “This is the face of a traitor, fellow clan mates…. But no one will remember you anyway.” Paz said, positioned himself behind Mando and tilted his head back by pulling on his hair. Now the Kid had to watch how the blade in Din’s stomach was violently pulled out with a spray of blood. Paz didn’t hesitate and brought the bloody knife to Din’s throat, who was panting heavily, trying to break free from the others grip. He felt the cold, sharp steel being pressed on his exposed flesh, already starting to nick his skin. But before he could cut Din’s throat, Paz yelled in pain.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Drama, drama 😜

The kid was standing right in front of them, both hands raised against them, his facial expression hardened. The little one felt something rising within him, he had never felt before. Hate, anger and on top of that fear, all of these emotions were nourishing the Kid's powers now. Paz choked as he felt something invisible tightened its grip around his throat. The knife he had held on Din's throat fell to the dusty ground. The other two mandalorians let go of Din, who fell on his belly, gasping in pain. The Kid's eyes narrowed as they attempted to grab their weapons. 

Mando tried to keep his mind focused and grabbed the knife from the ground. Quickly he turned on his back and rammed the blade into Paz thigh as he readied himself to attack the kid. The tall Mandalorian yelled in pain and kicked Din in the chest, knocking every ounce of breath out of his lungs. "You're a dishonored c-coward. A-attacking a child…" Din gasped and reached for his blaster. 

The kid lowered his arms and took a deep breath to recover, but in this moment the two other mandalorians leaped at him. Terrified, the little one covered his face with his hands, but suddenly he heard two shots and two bodies slamming to the ground. When the kid peeked through his fingers, he saw Din aiming at them with shaky hands. The little one chirped in relief and quickly waddled towards his buir, but suddenly Paz blocked his way while a trail of blood was leaking from his leg. 

"First I'm gonna kill you and then I'll take care of the brat, say goodbye, Din." he growled, grabbed Mandos collar and pushed him against the wall. A clicking sound revealed a hidden blade from his vambrace. "P-papa!" the little one screamed in horror as the cold steel met Din's flesh right below his curicass again. Suddenly another shot pierced the air and Paz stumbled backwards, letting go of Mando, who slipped down the wall, with his raised blaster in his hand. 

" Dank Ferrik!" Paz groaned and grasped his wound. "This is not over, Djarin…" he grunted, ignited his Jetpack and disappeared into the night sky. The kid was shaking in fear. Overwhelmed by his emotions, the little one started to cry bitterly. "K-Kid? Are you okay?" he heard a weak whisper. Din leaned against the wall, his hand firmly pressed against his wounds but failing to keep his blood inside his body as it seeped through his already coated gloves. His vision was already blurred and the pain was excruciating. 

The kid froze for a second as he looked at him. With his eyes scrunched shut and his deathly pale complexion, Din looked he was going to die any moment. As the little one regained control over his limbs again, he rushed at his father. "Pa...Papa!" he cried and pushed his tiny hands over Din's hand, trying to heal him. But as soon as he focused, dizziness took over him and he almost doubled over. He was too exhausted and sobbed in frustration. "Don't drain yourself, kid…" Din whispered and rubbed the Kid's back until his hand dropped limply to his side. 

Mando's pained gasps frightened him and the Child panicked. "Pabwa…" the little one yelled and his tears freely fell down on Din's stomach. But the mandalorian didn't stir, cold sweat dripped down his already white face and his breathing had just turned into unregular, shallow gasps. The kid climbed up to Din's chest, nuzzling his head on his already cold cheek. Suddenly, Mando opened his eyes, looking into the desperate face of his child. "I-I love you, Kid…." he mumbled, almost slurring and Din's head tilted to his side as he slipped into unconsciousness. 

The kid let out a heart-breaking scream, pressing his face against his father's neck, weeping desperately. But still he felt some weak heart beats. The kid thought for a moment and realized what he had to do. After he placed a smooch on Din's stubbly cheek, he slipped down on his lap, where a puddle of blood already had been formed. It soaked the Kid's brown robe and coated his small hands as he slipped on the ground. 

He turned back one more time, to make sure Din was still breathing. And then he ran, as fast as his short legs carried him. He snuck down the dimly lit street to get back to the cantina, hoping to find someone to help him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaand even more drama 😛

Cara paid for her last drink and gulped it down directly on the counter. “Goodnight, buddy.” she almost slurred at the Barkeeper, who nodded at her. After she stepped out of the bar, the fresh air was like a whip to the face. For a brief moment, she had to brace herself against the wall. “Oh, boy….” she chuckled and shook her head, trying to regain focus again. After she took a few deep breaths, she wanted to go home. Suddenly she heard a desperate squeak from a dark corner. 

Quickly, Cara drew her blaster. “Who’s there?” she called, trying to keep her voice clear. But suddenly, a little green someone stepped out of the shadow under the light of a street lamp. “Kid? What are you doing here? Where’s Mando?” she asked and knelt down to the visibly exhausted child. The more she looked at him the more she became aware of he was covered in blood. Suddenly, Cara felt sober. “Are you okay?” she grabbed the kid and looked for injuries. 

After she had figured out, the kid was unharmed, her stomach dropped again. Now she knew, it had to be Din’s blood. “What happened kid? Where’s your dad?” Cara asked and placed the little one back on the ground. Quickly, he led her through the dark side street into the backyard. After she turned around the corner, her heart skipped a few beats. “Mando!” she screamed and rushed at his side. He wasn’t moving and a pool of blood already stained the ground. Cara trembled as she fumbled on his neck, searching for a pulse. She didn’t find one and started to panic. “Din, no….” she cried and put her hand on his pale, cold face. 

Suddenly, she startled as she felt weak breaths against her skin. Hectically, she tried to feel his pulse again and finally found it weak and thready. The kid cooed at her, panic was written all over his face. Cara took a quick deep breath, trying to regain her composure. She took a look at Mando to locate the bleeding. “Dank Ferrik, Mando. Who did this to you?” she asked and looked at the kid, who pointed at Din’s helmet, which laid on the dusty ground. “His tribe?” she concluded and felt anger rising within her. But now she had more pressing matters at hand. 

Quickly, she ripped some stripes from Din’s cape and pressed it on the stab wounds, “Please, wake up…” she begged as he didn’t stir. The kid waddled beside his father’s head, snuggling on him and stroking his hair. After a few seconds, he wept silently. Cara was getting desperate and pressed a few buttons on her vambrace. “Greef, I need you to get a healer to my place. Mando’s hurt badly…” she said and a few seconds later, Karga replied. “Copy that, help is on it’s way.” 

“Alright, kid. Let’s get your dad to a healer.” Cara mumbled and pulled Din’s arm around her neck. Slowly, she tried to get up and pulled him along. A low groan elicited from him. “Din? Din are you with me?” she said and cupped his cheek. He didn’t answer, but she felt he was trying to stand. “Okay, let’s get you to my house.” Cara said and slowly the trio went on. The kid grabbed Mando’s helmet and carried it. 

Din’s mind was foggy. Everything seemed to spin around him and the only thing that anchored him in consciousness was the pain. He couldn’t speak and every step he took, drained him more and more. His body was shivering and the only warmth he felt was his own blood, which was leaking from his stomach at an alarming rate. Cara looked at him as she dragged him along. “Keep pressing the cloth on the wound, Din.” she mumbled and adjusted his hand on his stomach. “T-Trying.” he breathed and grunted. 

It took them about 10 minutes to arrive at Cara’s house. It was a cozy place with a big living room. As soon as Cara unlocked the door, Din almost collapsed. His body was on its limits now. “Just a few more steps…” Cara groaned as she positioned herself behind Din and slipped her arms under his armpits, dragging him across the tiled floor. He left a trail of blood from the front door to the couch, where Cara cautiously helped him lying down. Carefully, she eased him on his back and started to remove the armor plates. The kid watched her closely as he hugged Din’s helmet in fear. 

A few minutes later, the doorbell rang and Cara opened up. It was Karga and the healer, an old man with a long white, bushy beard. The former shock trooper gave Greef a serious look as he walked inside. Quickly, the healer started to work on Din, while the others just waited and hoped for the best. After the old man had medscanned Din’s body, he sadly shook his head. “He’s into shock from the immense blood loss. I can give him transfusions but you should be prepared.” he mumbled as he pushed a needle into Din’s veins. The kid gasped and his eyes filled with tears. “Cara, the kid…” Greef said as he noticed the little one was wiping his eyes. She bent down and picked him up.

“It’s alright, little one. He’ll be alright…” she tried to reassure, but failed miserably. The kid lowered his ears and sobbed quietly. After the IV was prepared and supplying Din with fluid, the doc pulled out a syringe with a very thick needle and inserted it into one of the stab wounds. Suddenly, Din jerked awake and gasped in pain. “Why don’t you give him a painkiller?” the shock trooper asked as she saw Din writhing on the couch. “There’s no time, I need to stop the bleeding as soon as he still has blood in his body. Every drop he’s losing makes him knock harder on death’s door.” the healer said wryly and Cara swallowed thickly. 

“The knife has hit an artery and the serum in this syringe is supposed to close this gap.” he further explained. Din arched his back, it felt like the knife was back in the wound and now rooting around in his insides. “Wait…” Cara said and handed the kid over to Karga. Quickly, she rushed at Din’s head and grabbed his forearms. “Din, look at me. You have to hold on….” she said, trying to distract him from the doctors procedure. He was panting heavily, with his eyes scrunched shut. He arched his back again, as the healer put the needle back in. 

Cara released his forearms and pushed her palms on his chest to hold him down. She was scared of how cold his skin was. “C-Cara, please….. take care… of the kid...when I’m… gone…” Din whispered and gave her hand a brief squeeze. “You’re not going anywhere…” she sobbed but as soon as she was squeezing his hand back, she felt his body went limp.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long chapter today 😀 I tried to work in the name drop from the last episode though 😅

“Is he okay?” she asked the healer, slightly panicking. With his blood coated fingers, he checked Din’s vitals and said “He’s just passed out, don’t worry. I’m almost done, though.” Cara sighed relieved and watched the doc pulling out thread and a needle, starting to stitch the ripped skin up again. Suddenly, they heard a low groan again. 

“Din? Din are you with us?” the shock trooper asked and put her hand on his shoulder. He just nodded and gritted his teeth in pain again. The kid trembled in Kargas arms. It had been a long time ago since he had been scared this much. He reached his arm after him, trying to connect with him. “No, little one. You can’t get to him now, your Dad is in a serious condition. Let the doc do his work.” Greef said and put his hand over the kid’s. But now, the kid was just even more desperate. 

“I’m done.” the healer said and looked up from Din’s in blood covered stomach. “Is he going to be okay?” Cara asked and looked at him. The healer pulled out the medscan and waved it over Mando’s body again. “Well, he has better chances than before. He needs to stay on the transfusion. The bleeding is under control now though. If he makes it through the night, he’ll be okay.” the healer explained but it didn’t calm anyone. The doc pulled out another syringe and filled it up with medicine. “I’m gonna give him a sedative, so he’s gonna sleep until tomorrow. You need to change the blood supply, when this one is empty.” he explained and pointed to the makeshift IV stand right next to him. Cara nodded and noticed Din’s body was getting limp again after the healer had applied the sedative. “You need to fight, buddy…” she whispered and gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze. 

“Alright, I’m afraid, that’s all I can do for him now.” the healer said and left, after Karga paid him for his service. Greef put the kid down on the floor and turned to Cara. “Call me… if something happens…” he said and threw a worried look at his best guild hunter. “Of course. Good Night and thank you.” the shock trooper said and received a brief nod from him. After Karga had left, the kid dashed at Din but Cara picked him up. The little one squeaked and protested, trying to wiggle out of her grip. “Easy kid, you’re gonna stay with me tonight. Let your father rest.” she said softly, but the kid got even more upset. 

“Papa!” he called and reached his hand for Din, but Cara pulled him back again. “No, kid. Your father needs to rest, he almost died. You can be with him tomorrow again.” she said more strictly but suddenly, Cara felt like being choked for a short moment. When she looked at the little one, she noticed a glance, she had never seen from him before. His eyes were narrowed and anger was written all over his face. “K-Kid, please. You need to understand.” the former shock trooper choked, but suddenly, she felt the grip on her throat was loosening again. 

Cara took a deep breath, trying to regain her composure again. She was shocked by the kid’s anger towards her. The last time, he choked her, she was a thread to Din in the kid’s eyes and she kind of understood why he did that, but now, she was a little frightened by the little one’s powers. “Wait….” she said and stepped closer to Din, who slept tightly on the couch. She placed him beside his father “Be gentle..” The kid’s eyes teared up as he looked at Din’s prone body. He was still pretty pale, but not as bad as before. But when the child touched his side, he startled because his skin still felt so cold. 

“I have a suggestion. You help me to clean his wound, change his IV and then we head to bed?” Cara suggested and the kid’s ears perked up. “Fine, wait here. I’m gonna be right back.” she said and went to the bathroom. Suddenly, the kid felt her mixed feelings towards him and felt sorry. Actually, he didn’t mean to hurt her, but the fear of losing his father was driving him crazy. When Cara came back with a bucket of warm water and a cloth, which she placed on the table, the kid went to her and grabbed her hand. She startled for a moment by the sudden touch, but soon she felt the kid kind of tried to snuggle on her as an apology. 

Two big, watery eyes looked at her and his expression told her, he was so sorry. “It’s alright, little one. I should have known, you were scared. I know how much you love him.” Cara said with a smile and patted the kid’s fuzzy head. He smiled at her and watched her, scrubbing the dried blood from Din’s stomach and chest. The kid also grabbed a small part of the cloth and started wiping some blood away. Fortunately, Cara saw his skin color was returning slowly and his temperature slowly rose back to normal. After she finished cleaning his wounds and changing the now empty IV bag, she fetched some blankets to cover Din with. When she tucked him in, she watched the kid snuggling on Din’s hair, slowly stroking his cheek. The way he looked at his father almost broke her heart. 

Cara grabbed the kid, who sobbed quietly. “He’s going to be okay. Let’s just let him rest. Come on, let’s get some sleep.” she said and took him in her bedroom and placed him on her bed. “I’m gonna be right back.” the shock trooper said and went into her bathroom, getting dressed for the night. Now the kid felt exhaustion taking over him, so he leaned back on Cara’s soft pillow. His eyes dropped almost instantly and the kid fell into a deep slumber before Cara returned to him.

Cautiously, she laid down beside the little one, pulling a blanket over him. Gently, she put her hand on his back, noticing he held Din’s pendant in his tiny hands. “Good night, kid.” she whispered and turned to her side. “You better make it through the night, Din” Cara thought before she fell asleep. 

The kid awoke early in the morning, yawning and stretching his limbs. Cara was still sleeping, so he quickly snuck out of her bed and waddled to the living room. Din was still sleeping and the child let out a deep sight when he realized his father was still alive. But since he was alone now, he wanted to heal him. Clumsily, he climbed on the couch, touching Din’s side again. 

He stepped closer to his stomach, where he found two bacta patches, which covered his stab wounds. Gently, he placed his three fingered hands on it and focused. But suddenly, the memory of Din being stabbed right in front of his eyes flashed through his mind. His body started to tremble as fear grabbed hold on him again. And as much as he tried to heal Din, he failed. His powers felt like being blocked by his fears. Disappointed, he covered his face with his hands. 

The kid took a deep breath, trying to regain his focus and so, he tried again. But he failed again. The child growled in frustration and went to Din’s head, lying down close to his face. The mandalorian was still sleeping tightly and the kid watched him, feeling so sorry not being able to help. He moved closer, snuggling himself on Din’s neck. Now he felt a little better again. 

“Kid?” he heard suddenly and Cara stepped out of her bedroom, searching for him, but he has fallen asleep again. The shock trooper sighed when she saw him cozily snuggled up to Din. “I should have known….” she said and sat beside them. “You look way better today, buddy” Cara concluded as she looked after Mando’s wounds. Suddenly, she heard a low groan. “I-I gotta admit… I had… better days.” Din whispered and slowly opened his eyes. “Hey, welcome back. How do you feel?” she said, smiling from ear to ear. “Tired….” he replied and noticed a little green someone was lying next to him. “Kid… I’m so sorry.” Din whispered and put carefully, he put his hand on his back. The little one smiled and opened his eyes. His little heart was pounding from excitement and relief. Without any hesitation, he threw his arms around Din’s neck, hugging him tightly. “I missed you too.” Mando whispered and hugged him back. 

But now, Cara put on a more serious tone “Please, don’t scare us like this ever again. You were already knocking on death’s door. The little one was so scared.” “I know and I’m sorry.” Din replied and looked at the two big brown eyes. “Din…. he tried to choke me again when I told him that he couldn’t be with you tonight.” Cara added and looked at her hands. “He did what?” the mandalorian gasped and looked down at his little fellow again. “Yeah, but I think he did it just because he was so scared. He didn’t want to leave you.” 

Din sighed and noticed the kid was pressing himself against him, his ears lowered in shame. “Hey, I’m here kid. You don’t have to be afraid anymore. But Cara’s in charge if I’m not there, okay?” he said and stroked the kid’s cheek with his finger. “Hmmm…” the kid replied and lowered his head. Mando sighed when he saw how scared the little one was. “It’s okay, Din. He didn’t hurt me. But I’m afraid I have to tell you that I have some work to do. Gonna be back in the evening. Just make yourself at home.” the former shock trooper said and got up. 

So Cara left for work and left Din and the kid in her house. The mandalorian tried to sit up a little, but his wound protested painfully. “Papa!” the kid chirped and helped him leaning against the sofa back. “Thank you, kid.” Din gasped and pushed his hand on the wound. It took a moment for him to get control over the pain again. The kid climbed on his lap and put his hand on his stomach, focusing again. Suddenly, the kid squeaked and Din flinched. “Are you okay?” he asked and took the tiny hands between his index finger and his thumb. 

The kid looked at him, he had just felt the pain, Din was enduring. “Kid, don’t drain yourself trying to heal me. I’m gonna be okay.” the Mandalorian said and watched him intensely. The kid felt the connection and tightened his grip on Din’s finger. He closed his eyes, trying to share his mind. Mando closed his eyes too as he felt the kid tried to call him in a way he couldn’t explain. Suddenly, he saw flashes of images in his mind, memories, which don’t belong to him. 

Everything was a little blurred, but he suddenly flinched as he heard a voice. “Grogu, focus you must!” someone was calling him. Din looked up and a much older, wrinkly version of the kid stood in front of him. “Not getting distracted you must.” he said and turned away from him again. Din was confused, did he get caught in the kid’s memory? Then everything went dark, he was only able to hear, it was like his eyes were blindfolded. He heard screams, agonized screams, probably kids. He felt pain but suddenly, someone was grabbing him. Then everything went dark again. He was alone. Alone in the darkness. He felt empty at first, followed by a flood of emotions. He was crying. Crying until he hadn’t got any tears left. Everything went dark again. He heard some voices. “No, we bring it in alive.” Mando gasped as he heard his own voice. The pod he was lying in opened and he looked into his own beskar covered face. He felt afraid, like he was preparing to get hurt again. Darkness took over him again. 

The next thing he saw was lying in his little hammock. It was quiet, probably late at night. When he looked down, he saw himself again, sleeping in his bunk. He noticed he was smiling and the feeling of comfort and security spread in his chest, while he watched himself sleeping. Darkness took over him again and he stood in front of a campfire.

“Don’t get too close to the fire, kid.” he heard himself saying. He waddled to his side, sitting down and leaning against him. The Mando in his memory sighed, gently he picked him up, placing him on his stomach. “Get some sleep…” he said and Din felt a hand on his back, slowly rubbing circles. And in this last moment, he didn’t only feel safe or comforted, he felt being loved.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this chapter is a little bit boring, it's kind of a filler 😅 Anyway, I tried to add a lot of fluff, I hope you enjoy.

Din jerked awake, he had passed out on the couch. The kid was sitting on his lap, watching him closely. “What happened? Were these… were these your memories?” Mando gasped and straightened himself. The child nodded, but suddenly, Din had a certain name circling in his mind. “Grogu… Is that your name?” Din asked and the little one’s ears perked up in excitement. “Grogu.” he said again and the kid smiled from ear to ear, pressing himself on Din’s belly, trying to hug him. 

The mandalorian picked him up and leaned his forehead against Grogu’s. “Grogu… my child.” he whispered and suddenly, he thought of something he could do to make him officially his child. Carefully, he put him back on his lap, grabbing both of the little one’s hands and holding them with his fingers. For a second, Din closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I should have done this before….. Grogu, Ni kyr'tayli gai sa'ad. I will always be there for you, I will always be your father and I swear to protect you with my life. And most importantly, I will always love you, my son.” Din said, his voice was crackling with emotions. 

Grogu looked at him, at first, he didn't understand what was going on, but after a moment, he felt what Din was trying to tell him. He slowly bowed and closed his eyes, tears were brimming his eyes. “Nah, don’t cry, you make me crying too.” Din said softly and wiped his eyes. Grogu looked up to him and came closer. Slowly, he put his tiny hands on his chest, held them there for a second and put them on Din’s chest, right above his heart. But Mando clearly understood what he wanted to tell him with this gesture. “You have my heart too, Grogu.” he whispered, picked him up and placed a kiss on his forehead. The kid smiled, snuggling on Din for a while, but looking down on his fathers injuries on his stomach made him sad. Again, he tried to heal him, but Din stopped him and the kid sighed in frustration. 

“Hey, don’t strain yourself to heal me. I’m fine…” Mando said, but Grogu shook his head. Again, he laid his hands on the wounds and Din raised his brow. It was not the fact, he stopped him from healing him, it was that he wasn’t able to heal him, what made the child so sad. “Are you okay, kid?” he asked, but Grogu shook his head, looking embarrassed at his hands. “Hey, it’s okay. Really. Give yourself some time, your ability will return. I believe in you.” Din said softly and stroked the kids head. Grogu sighed, but put a happier face on then. 

Din closed his eyes for a second, feeling a little drained. The past few days were like an emotional and physical rollercoaster. “Baba.” Grogu said and the mandalorian looked up. “What is it, son?” he asked, but as he saw the kid rubbing his little belly, he instantly understood. “Well, let’s see what Cara has in her fridge.” Din mumbled and cautiously pushed himself up from the couch. But his stomach protested in pain and his knees almost buckled underneath him. But as much as he was in pain, he tried to hide it from Grogu. 

Slowly, he dragged himself into the kitchen, Grogu always at his side. They found some bread and canned sausage, which Din prepared for the kid on a plate. Grogu’s mouth watered by the sight of his full plate. But as he watched his father, bracing on the counter in pain, he felt so sorry for him. The little one reached out some bread for him, but Mando shook his head. “I’m not hungry, Grogu….” he gasped and wrapped his arm around his middle. The kid cooed sadly, his appetite almost vanished by the sight of his injured dad. 

Din scrunched his eyes and tried to breathe through the pain. His stomach felt like it was impaled with glass splinters. Suddenly, the kid got up and put his hand on Mando’s arm. Focusing, he scrunched his eyes and Din felt the pain was getting easier and he startled. “Whoa, kid. What are you doing?” he said as he heard Grogu gasping, also grabbing his stomach. The little one was exhausted as he transferred a part of Din's pain on himself, but he smiled because he was able to help. 

Taking a deep breath, Grogu returned to his plate despite the confused look of Din, who was feeling a little bit better. “What did you do?” he asked, but the kid just smiled at him. The mandalorian sighed, returning to the couch after the kid was finished eating. Din laid back down, preparing food and walking around was almost too much for his beaten body. After a few minutes, he fell asleep again. Grogu made sure his blanket stayed in place and watched over him until Cara returned in the late afternoon.

“Hey, Din. Wake up.” she said, gently touching his arm. But he didn’t stir. “Is he okay?” she asked and looked at Grogu, who sat on top of the sofas back. He nodded and Cara turned back to Mando again. Carefully, she pushed the blanket back to check his wounds, which looked pretty good. “Hey, wake up.” Cara said a little louder, putting her hand on his shoulder. With a low groan, he finally woke up. “What time is it?” Din muttered sleepy and pinched the bridge of his nose. 

“It’s already dark outside, have you been sleeping the whole day?” the former shock trooper called as she walked into her kitchen to grab something to eat. “Oh, you made some food?” she asked and stuck her head out of the kitchen door frame. “Yes, Grogu was hungry.” Din replied and pushed himself into a sitting position. “I didn’t know your stomach has an actual name” she laughed and returned with a plate of food in her hands. 

“No, it’s the kid’s name.” he said and she raised her brow. “How did you come up with that name?” Cara said and took a huge bite from her food. “I didn’t. He showed me some of his memories. Someone, who looked like an ancient version of himself called him Grogu.” Din explained and started telling her what he saw in the kid’s vision. Cara’s jaw dropped. “Wow, that’s incredible… And you officially made him your child?” 

“Yes, I adopted him under a mandalorian vow. He belongs to me. His name is Grogu Djarin now. The former shock trooper smiled, got up and hugged Din tightly. “Congratulations” she said and patted him on the back. “Well, I have some quite fitting news for you. Karga found a small apartment for you and the little one. Since you’re gonna need some time to heal, you can move in there if you want. I’ve already paid a visit and it’s perfectly fitting for a single parent. You can move in tomorrow and stay as long as you want. Or make it your permanent home if you wish. You can still work for the Guild and Grogu can visit school in town.” the shock trooper said and crossed her arms over her chest. 

Din thought for a moment, but he had no arguments to refuse this offer and it probably would be better for the kid to be settled for a while. He looked at Grogu, who seemed to understand because he nodded in agreement. “Alright, Nevarro is going to be our home now for a while at least.” Mando said and smiled. He leaned back on the couch and closed his eyes for a moment, he couldn’t recall a happier moment he had than now. Suddenly, the kid’s ears perked up as he heard his father’s stomach growling like a full grown mudhorn. “Did you eat anything today?” Cara asked and gave him a reproachfully look. 

Mando shook his head and placed his hand on his belly. “No, I’m not hungry. I’m fine.” he whispered but Cara cut his word. “Din, you need to eat, your body needs nutrition to heal. Dank Ferrik, you’re a father now. You need to take care of you too. Come on Grogu, let’s make some dinner for your stubborn dad.” the rebel trooper said and grabbed the kid. Din sighed and curled up on the couch again, his body demanded sleep, so he dozed off again. 

Fifteen Minutes later, Cara and Grogu returned with a plate topped with a huge pile of pasta. After she placed it on the table, she shook Din to wake him up. As soon as his nose picked up the delicious smell, his stomach was craving for food. Mando rubbed his eyes and got up and finally he started to eat something. After he was finished and his belly had a little bump now, Cara administered him some bacta, which the doc had left yesterday. They spent a lovely evening together, but one question has been bugging Cara the whole time. 

“Din, who did this to you yesterday. Who attacked you?” she asked and Mando almost choked on his tea. He cleared his throat and started telling. “It was Paz. Paz Vizsla. And he didn’t go after me at first, he tried to kill him. He blamed him for the loss of the tribe. And then he started accusing me for being a traitor, because he saw me removing my helmet in public.” Mando said and sighed.

“But you told me once, that they would not come to kill you if you’d remove it. Any change of terms and conditions lately?” she asked and sipped on her tea. “No, this is something personal. You know, Clan Vizsla took care of me as a kid, but they never really adopted me. That’s why I still have my family name, not that I wanted to change it either. It’s the only keepsake I’ve kept from my parents. Paz is mad at me, because I turned away from their way to live. That's my theory I don’t know the reason for sure.” Din explained and yawned. 

“I’m sorry, really. I hope life's making a better turn on you now.” Cara said and put her empty cup on the table. “Yes, I was able to keep him safe yesterday, but I don’t know if I’m able to keep him safe his whole life.” Mando said and put his cup down too. Suddenly, Cara got up and sat down beside him. “You can, never doubt that. And when he’s grown up, he’ll take care of you.” Cara said and put her hand on his shoulder. “Thank you…” Din replied and she got up. “Alright, let’s go to bed. Good night, boys” she yawned and stretched her limbs. 

Din laid down on the couch again, covering Grogu and himself with a blanket. “You ready to move into our new home tomorrow?” he said eliciting a happy coo from the kid. “Yeah, this will be our new life and I’m glad I can share it with you.” Din added and gave Grogu a good-night-kiss.


	7. Chapter 7

They slept peacefully until the next day. Cara woke them up with a nice breakfast. "Are you excited, Grogu?“ she chirped and fed the little one with a bun."Karga will be here soon with the keys to your new home" she said. And so he did, Karga arrived half an hour later. “Come, it’s not far from here” he said and went ahead. Cara stayed behind with Din, who couldn’t walk so fast. In a bag, she carried his armor but he insisted on putting on his helmet in public. “Are you okay?” she asked as Din fell back a bit, walking still hurt pretty much. Grogu waddled beside him, patting his shin, when he had to stop for a short break. They arrived after about ten minutes and Greef unlocked the door. 

When Din and Grogu walked inside, both of their jaws dropped. It was perfect. A cozy home, where they considered to live permanently after three seconds. “Do you like it?” Karga asked and looked over to Cara, smiling. “What do you think, buddy. You wanna stay here?” Din asked and looked down to the child, whose eyes widened with joy. Suddenly, Grogu chirped loudly and hugged the mandalorians leg. 

“I’m gonna take that as a ‘yes’” Greef chuckled and waved with the keys in his hands. “Thank you.” Mando said and looked around. “Alright, but since you’re still hurt, I want you to give me a call if you need any assistance, Din. Promise me” Cara offered and looked at him sternly. “Yes, I’ll call you for help.” 

“Great, now let’s let them enjoy their new home. I even had to let your fridge refilled. Enjoy your new home, Mando. And when you are healed, there are plenty of jobs waiting for you, while Uncle Greef can watch over the little one.” Karga said and bent down to the kid, patting his head. “It’s Grogu. He managed to let me see his past and he was called Grogu then. So, may I introduce you, this is Grogu Djarin.” Din said proudly, while Greef picked the kid up. “Grogu? Uncommon name, but it fits. Hey, Grogu…” he chirped and scratched the child behind his floppy ears, making him giggle. 

After Cara and Greef left, Din took a look at the bedroom and let himself fall into the huge bed, which filled almost a quarter of the room. He sighed loudly, noticing the kid was climbing up on his leg. The mandalorian pulled his helmet off his head and smiled contentment. Never before, he felt so much at home. Now, he saw all the possibilities of a normal, safe life for his child, while he would be still able to work as a bounty hunter. “Can you believe it, Grogu? This is our new home, our new life. We don’t have to live in deep space anymore. No planet hopping anymore. You can visit school, find new friends and I can return to a nice, warm home after my work is done. Sounds great right?” Din said after he picked the kid up, holding him above him with stretched arms. Grogu giggled in excitement and Din pulled him into his arms, hugging him tightly.

A few days later, Din and Grogu got quite used to their home. And although the mandalorian was still recovering, they had much fun together. Din took the advantage of having an actual bed and spent quite some time sleeping in it, while the kid was playing with some toys Karga bought for him. The other day, Din felt good enough to take the kid to town, just strolling through the colorful market and busy streets. It was quite a hot summer day and Mando was melting under his armor. He still hadn’t got the confidence to be without it in public, since he always wanted to be prepared to protect Grogu. So he went in full armor, although the hard, cold steel really started bothering his wounds for a while, making him gasp at certain movements. But Grogu’s excited smile and giggling for all the new experiences made him almost forget about it. 

But after a while, the pain was seeping through again and he stopped for a moment, grasping his stomach. “Papa?” Grogu chirped and looked at him. “I’m fine, let’s go back home, little one.” Din said but as they turned around, Din saw a glimpse of a golden helmet behind a corner. A painful sting shot through his stomach and he protectively stood in front of the kid as the Armorer came into view. 

Both remained silent for a second before she gestured them through a dark passage, leading to the sewers. Din was on high alert, even the kid felt his tension physically. When they arrived at an abandoned tunnel, the female mandalorian turned to them, crossing her arms over her chest. “Why did you come back?” Din asked and balled his hands into fists. He tried to sound calm, but a hint of tension came through regardless. “I could ask you the same question, as I can tell, you weren’t successful at your imposed task.” she said with a stern voice, but her stance didn’t show any urge of a sudden attack and as far as Mando could tell, she was unarmed. 

“I’ve decided to turn away from the ‘old way’. I adopted him as my own, since he didn’t want to leave me. My new task is to make sure my son has a chance of a normal life. I want to raise him and be a father for him. I’ve learned much about his past and he only deserves being loved and sheltered.” Din explained and put his hand over his blaster. The Armorer remained silent. “And I’ve chosen another way to live too. Do you know Bo-Katan? She told me a few not so unimportant things, which none of you ever even considered telling me.” he added, watching her closely, pulling his helmet off right in front of her. Now he heard her growling for a split second and prepared for an attack. Din knew her fighting style, quick and precise. 

But she didn’t stir, just listened. And the lack of reaction, bugged Din massively. Grogu lowered his ears and hid behind Mando’s legs. The golden helmeted Mandalorian tilted her head to look at the child, eliciating a growl from Din. Then she took a deep breath and picked up the conversation. “I’ve always sensed you’ve let yourself be guided by your emotions, Djarin. But I’ve never thought your empathy would go so far. You abandoned your task and broke the creed and removed your helmet, I don’t know what kind of ridiculous stories Bo-Katan has planted into your brain, but I can’t call you a mandalorian anymore. You have no right to be in this clan anymore.” she explained calmly, too calm for Din’s taste. 

His grip tightened around this blaster. “I won’t fight you, Djarin. You’re hurt, that wouldn’t be fair.” the Armorer said and propped her arms on her hips. But still, the tension was thick and almost visible. “Who did this to you?” she asked and pointed on Din’s stomach. “Paz…. he ambushed me and the kid and tried to kill him. There were two other guys, who helped him. I’ve never met them before.Did you know about this? Did he come on your command?” Mando growled but she shook her head. 

“Paz had left the Covert long before the attack on Nevarro. He chose another way to live too, but in a more extreme way. He had started his crusade here, trying to gather as many zealots as possible. I don’t know anything about his current whereabouts. I heard, he also works as an assassin merc. But it looks like the ambush on you had more personal reasons” the Armorer concluded and crossed her arms over her chest again. 

Suddenly, Din felt a little more comfortable and loosened up a bit. “Did you find any other survivors?” he asked but she shook her head again. “No, that’s what I came here for. Nevarro is now a hotspot for trading with any kind of clientele. I was looking for the others and ran into you.” she said and Mando nodded. He noticed, he had nothing else to tell her. At first, he was mad at the Covert and the Armorer for making him live a lie. But now, since he adopted Grogu, he had no space for such kind of anger and vengeance. 

“Alright, good luck then. May the force be with you. Come on, Grogu, we’re leaving.” Din said, putting his helmet back on and turned away from his former tribe leader. Suddenly, he felt free, relieved from the old boundaries. “This is the way. I don’t know what made you choose this way of life. But I hope you won’t regret it one day. There will be no return.” she said and finished this conversation. 

Din’s tension finally loosened when they arrived at their home. He sighed, but he felt he needed this conversation to set things right. He pulled his helmet off again and looked at it for a moment. “All those years I was caged inside you…” he thought to himself and took a deep breath. But suddenly, Grogu patted his shin, pointing at his open mouth. “Yes, let’s make Dinner” he said and picked the kid up, heading into the kitchen. 

They spent another lovely evening together, but still, Din was a bit uneasy. A weird feeling was gnawing on his stomach and it bothered him for disturbing his peace. Grogu sensed his concern and tried to distract him by playing until it was late. The kid waited for him in bed until he finished changing his bacta patches. “Guess another week and I won’t need them anymore” he said a little more cheerfully and joined Grogu. I

t was a warm summer night and the little one tried to wave some cool air at his face. Din sighed. “I think it's time to get you some more clothes to change. We’re gonna head back to the market tomorrow and buy you something new.” Din said and took off his thin T Shirt. He reached for his knife, which he kept on the nightstand along with his blaster and started cutting holes for Grogu’s arms and legs into it. 

“There you go….” Mando mumbled as he pulled it over the kid’s head, helping him to stick his limbs through the right holes. In the end, the kid looked like wearing a very long, white tunic. But it was much more comfortable than the thick brown robe. Din turned off the light and the kid was asleep within minutes. But the mandalorians thoughts started circling in his mind, preventing him from sleeping. Gently, he stroked the kid’s back and closed his eyes.

It was late at night, when Din finally found some rest, but at least he fell into a deep slumber. The Kid was sleeping tightly at his side but suddenly the Mandalorian heard something. Keeping his eyes closed he tried to figure out if he was dreaming or not. But then he heard it again and opened his eyes. But he was too dazed to realize a dark silhouette was bending right over him. His instincts kicked in and Din reached to get his blaster from the nightstand. 

But the person beside him was faster, jumped on him and grabbed his neck, pushing a hand against Din’s mouth to keep him quiet with brutal force. The mandalorian had trouble breathing, but still tried to reach his blaster, but suddenly an intense pain shot through his right hand. The stranger pinned his hand on the nightstand with his own knife right through his palm. The pain was excruciating and blinding at first. But after a few seconds, he got a glimpse of his attacker. It was the Armorer. Din’s eyes widened. Her leather gloved hand still kept him shut, and she had pressed one knee on his already injured stomach, causing even more pain. 

Din’s glance shot over to the kid, who was laying suspiciously still on his side. “Don’t worry, I've already taken care of him.” she said, reached over and turned the kid on his back. Din’s insides twisted as he saw a knife protruding from his small body and a deep red spot on his shirt. His eyes were shut and his face was ghostly pale. Tears shot in his eyes instantly, followed by burning hate. He tried to push her off but failed as she pressed her knee harder on his wounds. Din wanted to scream, but he could barely breathe. “Shh, you deserved that, Din. You’re a traitor and know you’re gonna pay the price for that. No one can escape the tribe….” she whispered, almost softly and with an ugly sound, she ripped the knife from the kid’s body. 

Now, small droplets of his blood started to stain Din’s skin. He shivered as the still warm liquid spread on his body. The female mandalorian held the second knife in front of Mando’s face, almost playing with his desperate glance. Din knew, he had no chance to get out of this alive, he couldn’t even use his right hand as it was still pinned on the nightstand with the other knife, secondly, his emotions now were consuming him, he had lost the kid and it literally paralized him. He just watched the knife going lower until he felt it’s tip gently grazing his skin.

“Say goodbye…” the golden helmeted Mandalorian whispered with amusement and stabbed the blade right into Din’s chest. He tried to gasp, but her hand blocked his airways. Suddenly he tasted blood in his mouth as the surroundings got more and more blurred. “This is the way… “ the Armorer said and the last thing he felt was she was releasing him, but then, nothing.

Suddenly, he awoke with a start, hearing the child screaming beside him. “Grogu!” he screamed, but as Din opened his eyes, he was in his bed, apparently unharmed. The mandalorian took a few seconds to get a clear mind but a small green creature grabbed his arm and attention. “Kid?!” Din now almost cried as he saw him standing beside him, looking very worried. Din let out a relieved sigh. “Just a dream, just a damn nightmare…”

He knew, he was shivering, small beads of sweat rolled down his neck and chest. His heart felt like it was pumping a gallon at a second. “Paba?” the kid cooed at him and tightened his grip on his arm. “I’m alright, kid.” Din gasped and took a look at his right hand, there was no blood, no stab wound, nothing. He looked to his right and noticed his blaster still laid there where he had put him before. Then his hand wandered over his torso, but still, nothing but the old wounds he had already had. 

Mando let out another deep sigh and leaned down on his pillow again. He couldn’t actually remember having such an intense nightmare like this before. Now he finally took a look at his left, seeing the now glistening tears of his kid made his stomach drop. Din took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Grogu, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” 

But the kid couldn’t prevent a big tear rolling down his face. “Don’t cry, I’m here. I just had a nightmare.” Din said softly and pulled the kid on his chest. Still, the little one could feel his throbbing heart beat, but regardless, he snuggled onto him. “I’ve got you, kid. Try to sleep.” Mando whispered and put his hand on the little one’s back, trying to soothe him. But even though it was just a nightmare, it left a bitter taste. Was he really prepared for everything?


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been working the whole evening on this chapter and it actually turned out darker than I thought 😶  
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy this emotional chapter.

In the early morning hours, Din finally found some sleep, but he didn’t sleep well. Grogu was lying sprawled across his chest and felt his struggle. The mandalorian knew it was just a nightmare, but it felt like a bad omen. Something gnawed on his stomach and left a deep hole of doubts. He had hoped, he and the kid would finally find peace here. For months they were on the run, constantly escaping from the grip of the empire. Din knew, Gideon was somewhere out there and someday, he had to face him. 

But when he thought back to the fight on Nevarro, his stomach dropped. Gideon almost had killed him with only one precise shot. Never before had he felt such a threatening presence around an enemy. The fact, he knew his real name and his plans to harvest the child's powers concerned him. Din noticed the grey clouds over his mind grew even darker, he was so tired. He rubbed his eyes and took a deep breath, startling for a second by the small weight on his chest. In all his thoughts, he forgot the kid was lying there. 

Despite his dark mood a smile appeared on his face as he watched Grogu sleeping. Din had always felt the child was his personal light. Something that guided him out of the darkness, something that gave him purpose. And he knew, he had to protect him no matter what. Cautiously, he picked him up and cradled him for a moment. Grogu looked so peaceful sleeping. 

Carefully, he laid him back on the soft mattress and pulled him in a close embrace. Feeling the soft breaths against his skin finally distracted him from his gloomy mood and he finally found some sleep. The kid woke up a few hours later with a big yawn. He felt so comfortable in Din’s arms and he was glad his father found some rest. Turning to his side, he snuggled even closer. Sleepiness claimed him again as he listened to Mando’s soft heart beats. So he fell asleep again and both slept past noon. 

The bell rang and Mando got up, wrapping himself into a bathrobe. Cara was already waiting impatiently. “Eh good morning?” she chuckled at Din's straight-out-of-bed appearance as he opened the door. Still sleepy, he let her in. “Haven’t anything from you in days. You had me worried a little, to be honest.” she said and watched him preparing coffee. She greeted the kid as he waddled out of their bedroom, to check who’s visiting. 

Cara helped Din making breakfast but she couldn’t deny he was acting differently. “Is something wrong?” she asked as he took a sip from his coffee. “No, I’m fine.” he replied, looking at the contents of his cup. The shock trooper looked over to Grogu, who lowered his ears. “Don’t lie to me. What happened?” she said more sternly. Din sighed and started telling her about the meeting with the Armorer and the nightmare he had. “Hmm that’s weird, all new arrivals are registered and there were no other Mandalorians except you. I need to talk to Myrthol, it seems he’s quite sloppy with the registrations.” Cara said and crossed her arms over her chest. 

“Din, you are safe here and I promise you the incident with Paz was an accident. I can provide guards around your house for protection.” she offered but Din rejected. That was the last he needed. “I can take care of my child myself…” he growled and tightened his grip on the cup. “Hey, I didn’t mean to doubt your skills. I was just trying to help. You’re still hurt, there is no shame to accept additional help.” she said and took a sip from her mug. “No, thanks…” Mando mumbled and got up promptly. Without any further word he went into the bathroom. 

Cara sighed. “What’s wrong with him? He really needs to get rid of his paranoia if he ever wants to live a peaceful life.” she told Grogu, who nodded at her. The former shock trooper smiled at the kid, who chewed on his third bun. “Do you have any idea how much he loves you, little one? I hope you’ll never forget that.” she added and patted him on the head. Fifteen minutes later, Din returned in full armor. “Did Karga offer you a job or what’s going on here?” Cara asked and raised her brow. “Since when do I need permission to wear my armor? A week ago, no one knew me without it. If someone attacks us, I’m prepared.” he stated and took place on his chair again. Grogu looked at him and lowered his ears. He knew it was his father under that beskar, but still, he felt much more distant, almost unreachable. 

Cara sighed and got up. “Alright, I’ve got some work to do. I hope you learn to trust me someday, you don’t need that armor here.” She emptied her mug and left them. Din sighed and propped his helmeted head on his hands. “Papa?” Grogo chirped and tried to touch Mando’s arm. “I know, kid. But you also remember Paz’ ambush. He almost killed you and I don’t trust the Armorer either. My whole tribe had been lying to me almost my entire life. Paz's family raised me and in the end he almost killed me. I can trust no one…… except you.” Din said, his voice crackling a little. He grabbed Grogu’s hand and held it between his thumb and index finger. 

After they finished breakfast, Din took the kid to the local market to buy, as promised, some new clothes for him. But everything they offered was way too big for the little one, so they had to pay the local tailor a visit. In the end, they found a nice dark brown robe with a beige undershirt, wide sleeves and a matching leather belt and made from a much thinner fabric than his old one. “You look great, Grogu.” Din said, sounding a little happier than before and patted the little one on his back. 

They returned after getting some groceries and Din spent the whole afternoon brooding, even extending his already gloomy mood. His paranoia kept his mind in a tight grip. Days passed and he didn’t get better. The kid suffered under the sudden lack of affection. He missed cuddling him without the beskar between them. Only for the purposes of sleeping, Din put his armor away, but he laid awake almost every night. Grogu noticed, he wasn’t eating well too and his healing progress seemed to stagnate. One evening, he heard him cursing through the bathroom door. Mando wanted to change the bacta patch but he had to acknowledge, his wound had gotten a little infected. 

“Dank Ferrik!” he growled as he cleaned it with a cloth. “Papa?” He heard a small voice from outside. “I’m alright, Grogu…” he replied annoyed and the little one’s eyes started to tear up. Suddenly, Din looked up and was caught by his face in the mirror. He felt a huge weight resting on his shoulders. When he closed his eyes, he saw Grogu standing next to him, his little hand pressing on his wound. It was a flashback from the ambush. He felt the fear and the frustration not being able to heal the stab wounds. ‘Don’t let your fear clench your heart, don’t let it determine your life’ he heard himself saying in his head. 

“I am hurting him…. he’s not able to use his powers because his fears are blocking them” Din realized and braced on the sink. He looked at the mirror again, the shadows under his eyes contributed his pale complexion. Mando hadn’t noticed how exhausted he looked, ever since he had decided to put the armor on again. But there was still doubt in his heart, but he knew he was hiding from his fear behind the beskar. 

“No, this is not me….” he whispered and took a deep breath. Leaving his armor behind, he left the bathroom. But as he opened the door, Grogu stood before him, tears were streaming down on his chubby cheeks. Din dropped on his knees and pulled him in a close hug. “I am so sorry…. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I was just… afraid. Afraid of losing you.” the mandalorian cried and rubbed the kid’s back. “I saw your memories and now I know the reason why you can’t use your powers. But we will figure this out, I promise. I’m always here for you.” Din whispered and noticed, Grogu was calming down again. But not just the kid, the huge weight on his shoulders lifted significantly. 

He got up again, carried Grogu to their bed and laid down with him. The kid looked up at him with swollen eyes. “Seems like I needed some butt kicking to break some old habits. Thank you, son” he said and kissed the kid’s forehead. And since that evening, Din found back to his former self and was trying to help Grogu to get rid of his deepest fears, but this was something he couldn’t manage for now, it would be a longer process of mental healing. Din only had seen a glimpse of the kid’s past but there were many years, who he had no idea, what kind of traumatic experiances ruled the child's mind back then. The only thing he could do was to love him with all his heart, being the person, who carries the light even through his darkest times.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, this is maybe the only chapter this week, since I've got a bunch of work to do. I hope you enjoy it 😄

They fell asleep soon after. Both had their probably deepest sleep since weeks. Din woke up early the next day, still holding Grogu in his arms. He smiled and tucked him in as he got up to go to the bathroom. But as soon as he was finished, the doorbell rang. “Who’s this so early?” he mumbled to himself and opened the door. It was Cara. Without any word, she stepped in and Mando remembered how rude he was to her the other day before. “Cara.. I’m sorry.” he stammered and he really meant it. 

The former shock soldier looked at him, her features were hard to read. But then she sighed loudly, loosening the tense situation. “Din, it’s okay. I thought about it the past few days and I think I overreacted….. “

“No, I was the one who was mad and you were right. I’m sorry, I didn’t trust you. You’re doing an excellent job here, Marshal” Din said and gave her a smile. Cara smiled back at him and pulled him in a close embrace. She felt him hesitating for a moment and let go. “Sorry….. I am not used to…. getting hugs or something” he stammered, obviously nervous. But she understood. This man lived for decades hidden behind cold steel and a mask and was not used to actual physical contact. 

“Sorry, Din… I should have known.” she said and took a step back from him. “I didn’t say you need to stop.” he whispered and hugged her again and it felt good. Cara gently rubbed her hand between his shoulder blades and she liked the feeling that he was just a man behind all this beskar. It felt like she was hugging her best friend for the first time. 

“Apology accepted?” Din whispered into her shoulder. Suddenly, she chuckled and nudged his side. “Of course, buddy” she said “And if you ever want to practise hugging, I’m right here” she added with a wink. Din chuckled and Grogu waddled into the living room, rubbing his tired eyes. Mando went to pick him up. “Did we wake you, kid?” he asked, but Grogu was busy smiling at Cara. “Good morning, little one…” she chirped, but suddenly received a call on her vambrace comms system. 

“Marshall Dune here…..” she said waiting for a reply. “Cara, do me a favor and fetch Mando and the Kid, we have some visitors in the office.” they heard Kargas voice and Din raised his brow. “Alright, copy that.” the shock trooper said and ended the transmission. Mando looked at her. “Who is waiting in the office?” he asked and put Grogu on the floor. “I don’t know. Come on, get dressed and we’ll find out.” she said and picked up the kid. Din sighed and went to the bathroom. Twenty minutes later, he had showered and entered the living room in full armor again. 

It was a fifteen minute walk into Greef’s office. They heard multiple voices from outside. Some of them sounded a bit familiar to Din and as soon as they entered the room, he knew why. “It’s good to see you again, brother. Or should I call you Din Djarin?” a female Mandalorian with a blue helmet asked. “Kryze? What are you doing here?” Mando asked and looked at her and her two companions Axe Woves and Koska Reeves. The last one was the first to remove her helmet. “We missed you, Mando.” she chuckled and her glance fell at Grogu. 

Bo-Katan and Woves followed her action and removed their helmets as well. “We need to talk. We have some worrying news for you.” Kryze said and guided them out of the office. Cara and Grogu followed them to the cantina. “But first, let’s have a nice lunch.” the female mandalorian said as she took her seat on the table. Din sat down too with Grogu on his lap. The waiter joined them and asked them for their order. “I really want to invite you for a drink, but….” Bo-Katan said but Din finally pulled his helmet off in front of the others.

All of their jaws dropped as he put his helmet on the table. “Water, please. For the kid and me.” he said. “Okay, now things make sense…” the female Mandalorian said and Mando raised his brow. “We’ve met Ahsoka a week ago and she said she had never heard of you or the little one. You didn’t bring him to her?” she asked and all eyes were on Din. 

He sighed and told them the whole story. Bo-Katan smiled. “I know, it must have been a hard decision to make, but I’m pretty sure you won’t regret it. Especially for your son, no child should grow up with a father hidden behind a helmet.” she said and raised her glas. “Okay, now that I told you my story, what brought you here?” Din asked and took a sip from his water. 

“Well, we’ve been observing some underground mandalorian networks and we stumbled upon an encrypted transmission from Paz Vizsla at a hidden imperial base here on Nevarro.   
Koska managed to decode parts of the message and it was for Moff Gideon. He told him about ‘the asset is here on Nevarro’” Kryze said and she noticed Din’s expression hardened. “Paz….” Din growled and felt a sting in his stomach. “That’s why we came here. We wanted to warn you and protect you and Grogu.” Koska said and gently nudged the kid’s side, what made him giggle. 

“Thank you….” Mando said, but suddenly there was a loud noise from outside. Quickly, all Mandalorians put their helmets back on. Din held Grogu close to his chestplate and drew his blaster. But as they went outside, they heard the particular sound of a Tie Fighter. “He’s coming…” Bo-Katan said and she and her team got ready. “We’re under attack!” they heard a voice from Greef, who joined them and Din gave him the kid. “I’ll protect him.” the older man said and Mando gave him a nod, following the others outside of the town. 

The Mandalorians and Cara ran towards the appearing imperial cargo ships.Three landed right in front of them. Storm Troopers started to spread and raid the city. They had a superior force against them. And although the team managed to kill dozens of Troopers, they were forced back into town. Din and Bo-Katan stayed in the front line and managed to blow up one of the freighters. But as soon as one ship with Troopers turned into dust, another ship landed. But suddenly, there weren’t just normal Troopers. Two squads of Dark Troopers joined the fight. On top of that Paz stepped out of the last ship. “Go and find them, but don’t kill them. The Moff needs the child alive and I’m gonna take care of Djarin.” he said and looked around. 

“Din!” Bo-Katan screamed as one of the Dark Troopers attacked him from behind. With a quick dodge, he managed to get out of his aim. Suddenly, Bo-Katan screamed as she was attacked by one of the black Troopers. But Cara and Koska came to assist her. The fight was getting more intense and Din had to acknowledge that they all get killed if they don’t retreat. Paz observed the fight and one of the Dark Troopers landed on his side. “The kid is nowhere to be found.” he said and the tall mandalorian growled. He ignited his jetpack and looked for Din, who fought two Dark Troopers at once. 

“Paz!” Mando hissed and the other landed right before him. “I see you’re still alive.” Paz growled and gave the Troopers a silent signal to grab Din’s arms. He tried to fight them, but they shot his wrist, so he dropped his blaster. Din was forced to his knees as one of them knocked him down with the hilt of his weapon. “Where is the kid?” the tall mandalorian asked and grabbed Din by his collar and pulled him up. “You’ll never find him…” he snapped back and Paz rammed his knee into his stomach. 

Din grunted in pain and the tall mandalorian repeated his question. But since he didn’t get an answer again, he drove his boot into Mando’s side, ribs were cracking under the violent blast. Heavily breathing, Din propped himself on his arms and grabbed his vibroblade, his only remaining weapon, blood was dripping from his visor. But as Paz aimed at him with his blaster, Cara and Bo-Katan rushed to rescue. They stood before Din to shield him from the shot, but Kryze got hit on her leg. Grasping her wound, one of the Dark Troopers grabbed hold of her. 

Din forced himself on his feet and threw his knife at the Trooper and the blade got stuck in his neck. He let go of Bo-Katan and she fell to the dusty ground. “Thank.. you” she gasped and Cara helped her up. “Stop, we can end this here. We want Djarin and the kid. If you surrender, I’ll call all of the troopers back.” Paz offered and looked at Din. Everyone looked at him as he lowered his fists. “Din, no…” Cara whispered, but he ignored her. Slowly he walked towards Vizsla. “Alright, tell them to retreat.” Paz commanded one of the Dark Troopers. 

Bo-Katan and Cara were pulled away from them. “Din, no!” Cara screamed again but the trooper’s fist hit her stomach. “Protect him..” Din said and the female mandalorian and the shock trooper had to watch as Din was knocked to the ground by one of the Dark Troopers. Paz ripped the helmet from his head and tossed it to the ground. “You don’t need it anymore.” he chuckled and buried his fist into Din’s stomach. The mandalorian dropped to his side, gasping in pain. He knew, Paz enjoyed beating him up. 

And he did until Mando went limp. Blood was leaking from his mouth and he had several lacerations on his head. Suddenly, a ship’s fire shot at them. It was Greef and Grogu attacking them with the Razor Crest. “Get him to the ship, we’re leaving.” Paz ordered and the Trooper pulled Din up, who was still unconscious. They dragged him to their ship and threw his limp body into the cargo section. 

“Greef, stop shooting. They took Din hostage. Stop firing!” Cara yelled at her vambrace as the Razor Crest got closer. Now, they were forced to watch the Imp’s ships all disappear into the atmosphere. Karga landed the Crest and Cara helped Bo-Katan with her leg. “Dank Ferrik!” she cursed as she sat down on the ramp. A deafening silence laid over the battlefield and Cara located something shiny on the dusty soil nearby. It was Din’s blood stained helmet, which lay abandoned on the ground.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now it's getting a little whumpy here 😏 Sorry it took so long for an update.

Din had no idea how long he’d been unconscious. He woke up in a dimly lit cell with his wrists cuffed above his head, attached to a chain, which was hanging from the ceiling. Leaning against the wall, he cracked his eyes open and noticed his head and face was caked with dry blood. But as soon as his consciousness fully returned a piercing headache shot through his temples. The mandalorian groaned and tried to remember what had happened. 

His vision was still blurred and it was hard to focus for him. “Damnit….” he breathed as he realized, he clearly had a concussion. Looking down on his body, he further noticed the imps had stripped him off his beskar. Desperately, he looked around and found it stacked in the corner. A little sigh of relief escaped his parted lips. Suddenly, he remembered Paz was beating him up until he had lost consciousness and soon after that realization his body remembered it too. There was no part, which didn’t hurt. His torso felt like it was crushed and breathing without piercing pain was a task. 

Suddenly he heard a voice through a speaker. “Are you awake, Djarin?” he heard someone saying, but couldn't sort out who was speaking, his mind was still too foggy. Din didn’t reply and waited. But all of the sudden electricity streamed through the chains, he was cuffed with and made his body arch in pain. Panting, he leaned his head back on the wall, trying to breathe through the spasms. “Are you awake now?” the voice asked with a hint of smugly cruelty. 

Again, he didn’t reply. He was too busy keeping himself conscious. Another stream of shocks shot through his body, this time even longer. Black spots started to dance in front of his eyes and his internal organs felt like being cooked. Beads of sweat rolled down his face and he scrunched his eyes. “I’ve gotta get out of here…” he thought to himself, the first clear thought he had since he had woken up. Suddenly, the door to his cell opened and Paz stepped into the room. 

Din only heard the heavy boots on the floor, but he hadn’t had the strength to lift his head. But the tall mandalorian wasted no time and grabbed his shirt, pulling him up. Now, Mando was forced to look into the expressionless visor of his former tribe mate. “Tell us where you hide the kid…..” Paz grunted, but his words only eliced a weak smile from Din. “You’ll never find him….” the mandalorian chuckled and as he expected he received a hard punch into the gut. Din gasped, but he still chuckled. He didn’t care if they would really kill him. Grogu was safe, that's all that mattered to him now. He trusted his friends far enough to take good care of him. 

“If you don’t talk, I’m gonna break every bone in your body and I’ll let you die, choking on your own blood.” Paz hissed and smashed Din to the ground again. “Do you really think I'm afraid to die? You are more stupid than I thought. The child’s safety is more important to me than my own life and if I can save him by dying to keep his location secret, I’ll welcome death with open arms.” Mando whispered, teasing the tall mandalorian. With an angry growl, Paz savagely stomped onto Din’s leg, breaking his left shin bone. This time, Din couldn’t bite back the scream as the excruciating pain shot through his body. Paz smiled underneath his helmet and pulled him up again. 

“Are you ready to talk now?” he hissed. “Never….” Din choked out and suddenly, he heard the clicking of a blaster. The tall mandalorian aimed at him. “Come on, coward…..” Mando teased and prepared to die any second. Back in his mind, he said goodbye to Grogu and his friends. Paz’ finger around the trigger tightened but another voice from the speaker stopped him. “We need him alive…. Take him to the lab, I need to talk to him.” Gideon’s voice commanded. But Din had no time to take a quick breath as the tall mandalorian knocked him down again.

Cara broke down on the chair and sighed loudly. The group was back at the cantina, no one said a word. Grogu kept hugging Din’s helmet, big tears were rolling down his face. The tension was thick in the air until the shock trooper slammed her palm on the table. “We’ve got to do something. Din sacrificed himself to the imps, we need to find him!” she snapped and looked into the sad faces of her comrades. Bo-Katan was busy patching up her leg and Koska helped her. 

“I know, I’ll never let any of my people down and he was one. The question is, where do they keep him hostile. And what are they doing to him….. Moff Gideon can be cruel….” Bo-Katan said and looked to the ground. “I hope they’re still on planet, otherwise, we’ll never find him” Cara said and took a look at Grogu, whose ears were as low as ever before. The Kid watched his reflection in the silver beskar helmet, trying to feel Din’s presence. “They can’t be far. Remember, they wanted the kid, not him. I’m pretty sure, they are still stuck around here somewhere.” Koskak said and suddenly, Greef entered the cantina. “Alright, Myrthol and I scanned the whole planet. The only suspect facility we found is an abandoned drill rig in a far remote lava lake. It would take us at least one day to get there on a speeder. But I don’t know if they are keeping him there.” he explained, but it was a small spark of hope. “Alright, let’s take the Razor Crest and we’d be faster.” Cara said and got up from her chair. “No… they would see us before we even land, we need to move more cautiously. Either, we take the ship and walk the rest of the way or we’re gonna take a speeder and stay more hidden and agile.” the former mandalorian leader said thoughtfully and Cara agreed. 

“I’m gonna prepare the speeder…” Karga said and left again. “I hope this won’t be in vain.” Koska said but the Marshal cut her word. “It won’t, Din is strong, he’ll never tell them where the kid is hidden.” she said and propped her hands on her hips. “This is a good point. What are we going to do with him?” Woves asked and his eyes flicked over to Grogu. “He’s more safe, when he’s with us. If we leave him here and they’re gonna come back, there’s no one to protect him” Bo-Katan acknowledged and got up as well. Slowly, she limped to Grogu and picked him up. 

Squeaking, he grabbed hold on Mando’s helmet and grunted in frustration. “Hey, we’ll save your dad, don’t worry little one.” she said, but to Grogu it sounded less promising. Half an hour later, everything was prepped for leaving. “Alright, here goes everything.” Cara said and started the old rusty speeder. Grogu frowned, but he had to rely on the others to save his father. 

Din couldn’t move, the cuffs around his wrists and ankles almost cut into his bare flesh. He felt the panic rising within him but he tried to conceal it. Never he would give Paz that triumph by showing his weakness. The tall mandalorian stood still, studying him. Suddenly a door opened and Gideon joined them. “Moff Gideon?” Paz asked and looked at the Imp. “I’ve been told you’ve been trained at the old art of torture? I need to know where the asset is, he’s no good to me dead.” Gideon said and propped his hands on his hips. 

“I am, but this is something personal.” Paz said and looked over to Din, who was still strapped on the table. “Do whatever you need to do, but I need this information. Or you’ll be enjoying my way of torture.” the Moff said and stepped closer to Din. “Why do you want to make this extra painful? You know, we’re going to find him anyway. I can see your fear, Din Djarin.” Gideon said and looked at him derogatorily. Mando remained silent, the pain of his broken leg and his other wounds made his mind mushy, almost impossible to focus. 

Gideon put a smile on his face and nodded to Paz. Without any further word, he left the room again. Din flinched as the tall mandalorian picked up the conversation. “Why did you do this? We rescued you as a child, we trained you and all you do is to abandon the way for a little brat, who is not even your own flesh and blood. It doesn’t matter what Bo-Katan was planting into your brain, there’s still only one way. The way. But now, you're gonna have to pay for your actions.” Paz said casually, like they would be having a nice small talk. 

“He’s my son! Blood doesn’t make a family. He’s a foundling, like me. We just have each other. The tribe may have rescued me, but I never really was part of their clan.” Din hissed back, finally willing to talk, but Paz just shrugged. “Well, it doesn't matter anyway anymore. Now, I’m gonna show you what real pain is. Our little conversation in your cell before was just the first course.” the tall mandalorian said and started to cut Din’s shirt with a knife. His glance fell on the two scars of the stab wounds on his stomach. “Did you like my souvenir?” he asked and chuckled as he ripped the fabric. 

“Fuck off.” Din hissed and shivered as the cold air grazed his exposed skin. “Mmh... it seems like my last message wasn’t clear enough though.” Paz said and the tip of his knife slowly grazed Din’s skin. Suddenly, Paz ignited his flame thrower and heated up the blade until it had a white hot glow. Mando remained silent, he had no idea what his opponent was up to but he was already preparing for pain. And it came, when Paz made the first cut, digging deep into his chest and burning the skin superficially. He felt the blood was seeping on his body and Paz stopped for a moment. “Now, my message is going to be skin deep, so you won’t forget it. If you’re gonna get out here alive anyway. So, I made my point, but there’s something my client wanted to know. Where do you hide the kid?” 

Din gritted his teeth when the next cut dug deep into his flesh. It wasn’t enough to kill him, but deep enough to torture you for an answer. But Mando stayed silent and tried to breathe through the pain. He felt the blood starting to pool underneath his right side. The following minutes felt like hours to Din, but he didn’t make any sound. But in the end, he felt dizzy from the blood loss and exhaustion. Cold sweat started to coat his skin and his breathing picked up pace. “I wonder, what kind of dishonored coward you’ve become to be the henchman of some filthy imp.” Din spat between his gaps. “I serve those who pay the most. The only one in disgrace in this room is you.” Paz hissed and lowered the knife again.

But Paz’ last cut finally eliced a loud groan from him, which made the tall mandalorian smile underneath his helmet. Din was breathing heavily and Paz looked down at his hard work. He had carved the word ‘traitor’ into Mando’s chest. “You will never forget what you have done.” he whispered and his smile widened as he saw Din scrunching his eyes in pain. “Now, are you finally in the mood to talk?” Paz asked, now serious again. Din was panting, the whole time he had managed to keep the pain under control, but the last bit pushed him over the edge.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry it took so long for an update, but I had a little christmas break and I actually worked some new ideas in this chapter.   
> I hope you enjoy it.

Din had had no idea how long he was unconscious, but when he woke up pain pulled him fast to the surface. He panted because his chest felt like someone had just poured acid on it, blood was still oozing from the wounds. He realized he was alone now, but he had no idea how to get out of here since he was still in chains. Looking around he had to acknowledge, there was possibly no way out for him. “At least Grogu is safe…” he whispered and closed his eyes again to breathe through another wave of pain. 

Back on the bridge, Gideon was waiting for Paz. “Did you get any information out of him?” he asked and turned to the tall mandalorian. “No…. he’s stubborn, he’d rather die than telling the location of the asset.” Paz mumbled, still frustrated because he failed, he never would have thought, Din would be so strong to stand against the torture. “So you’re only getting paid half the bounty. I hired you to torture him to get information not to let him make you look like a fool.” Gideon said and heard the mandalorian growling. “He’s not gonna survive anyway. The old art of torturing does not contain the survival of the victim. Let’s just say he’s gonna die slowly and painfully.” the tall mandalorian hissed as he received his payment.

Gideon sighed. “Alright, let’s get rid of him now. If he’d be still alive, kill him” he ordered and sent a Trooper to Din’s cell. The mandalorian was so dazed, he didn’t even realize someone came in. The Trooper approached him slowly, aiming his blaster at the prone form on the table in front of him. Din just looked dead to him, covered in his own blood, his body still and lifeless. But when he touched Din’s arm, the mandalorian flinched, making the Trooper stumble backwards. A shot was fired, got deflected by the wall and hit the Trooper in the chest. 

The poor guy stumbled forward and doubled over Din’s body and drew his last breath. The mandalorian groaned loudly as the Trooper landed on his belly. He tried to push himself up and realized the dead body, which was lying on him. A few moments later, Din realized this might be his way out of here. Groaning, he reached for the blaster, which was still in the troopers clutch. With shaky hands he grabbed it and shot at the cuffs around his left wrist. Fortunately, it sprang open so he repeated the procedure at the other cuffs too. But as soon, he tried to get from the table, dizziness swept over him and he realized he was still bleeding. Gradually, he assumed there was something wrong beside the wounds he had sustained. But now, there was no time to think about this. 

Quickly, he looted the troopers dead body and put on the undershirt, since his was torn and bloody and the blaster. Din was panting heavily, dragging himself out of the cell. He had to be careful not to run into a Trooper or even worse Gideon or Paz. He had to figure a way out of here. He found an exit and opened the heavy steel door. The drill rig was located in the middle of a lava lake and the heat made it hard for him to breathe. Din was relieved at first but a second after, he heard footsteps behind him. 

“I can not believe you’ve made it out of the cell, Djarin. Your skill of wiggling out of unpleasant situations is remarkable.” Paz said and applauded him, his glance fell on Mando’s blood soaked shirt and he smirked underneath his helmet. Din turned around and slowly backed up, he knew he was in no condition to fight. Vizsla drew his blaster and aimed at the injured mandalorian. “Alright, Din. One last chance. Tell me where the asset is and I’ll let you live.” the tall mandalorian asked, threatening and approached Din slowly. 

Mando suddenly laughed. “Your client isn’t as satisfied with your work, is he?” Din teased and Vizsla's finger around the trigger tightened. “Shut up, Djarin. You are in no position to joke around.” Paz hissed and came closer. “You can’t even kill me, when I laid bare and tied up in front of you” Din hissed back, but suddenly, they got company. “Enough….” Gideon growled and appeared behind them with the Darksaber in his hands. 

Now Din had to face two enemies and his chances were now down to zero. He was badly injured and almost unarmed. More and more he backed up until he reached the railing of the platform, with the lava lake underneath him. “He’s not going to tell you anything.” Paz said to Gideon. “I’m not as inefficient as you, Vizsla.” the older man replied dryly and the tall mandalorian growled. “Let’s end this here…” Paz determined and aimed at Din again, who propped himself against the railing. He knew his death was certain, but he didn’t want to die by one of his enemies hands. 

Gideon put his hand on Vizsla’s blaster and lowered it. He approached Din, who leaned against the railing now, because he hadn’t had the strength to stand anymore. Panting heavily, he watched the Moff coming closer. Gideon bent down to Din, putting a comforting hand on the mandalorians shoulder. “You don’t have to die, you just need to share this little information with us. I’m gonna spare your life, just tell me where he is and I promise, he won’t suffer.” Moff Gideon said softly and looked into Din’s eyes. But the mandalorian remained silent, trying to shrug off Gideons hand. 

Suddenly, the Moff ignited the Darksaber in front of Din’s face, so close, he could feel the heat radiating from it. “This ancient blade belongs to your kind. But I’m curious about how much pain a Mandalorian can endure from this sword.” the older man whispered and pressed the burning blade on Din’s stomach. Mando gasped by the piercing pain, which shot through his belly suddenly. The Darksaber burned it’s way through the fabric to cut his skin. 

Gideon smiled, when Din arched his back in pain. But he still wasn’t satisfied because he still hadn’t got the information he wanted. The blade cut deeper and deeper and Djarin gritted his teeth, what made the Moff smile softly. “Just tell me and I stop, I promise.” he whispered but he pressed the Saber even more on Mando’s body. When the first drops of blood started to leak from the wound, Din couldn’t bite back the scream anymore. 

Paz watched his boss, torturing Din Djarin. He had never thought to meet someone, who’s even more cruel than himself. But he also acknowledged Din’s strength. “He’s too stubborn. You won’t get anything from him.” Vizsla jested and Gideon suddenly got up and turned to him. “Shut up, Vizsla. Or you will be next.” the older man hissed and pointed the Saber at him. The last bit of Din’s consciousness realized, that the torture was over for now. His stomach burned like hell, leaking blood into his waistband. He knew he couldn’t stand this no longer and realized he’d die anyway. But not through Gideon’s or Vizsla's hand. So he made a decision.

With his last strength, he pushed himself up, climbing over the railing. “What are you doing?” Gideon asked as he watched him. “I’m taking the secret with me. You’re never gonna find him.” Din hissed. “Vizsla, grab him! He’s the only one, who knows the location of the asset!” Gideon ordered, but before Paz was able to move, Din let himself fall backwards from the platform.

§

The speeder finally arrived at the drill rig, tension was written all over their faces. “Alright, we need a plan. How are we going to get in?” Cara asked and looked at the others. Suddenly, Grogu cooed and held his head, like he was dizzy. “What is it, little one?” Karga asked and watched the child propping himself on the seat. He cooed again. Cara felt a sting in her stomach, did he sense something happened to Din?

“Grogu? Grogu, look at me. Are you okay?....Is your father okay?” she asked and grabbed the kid’s arm. They exchanged an intense glance and suddenly, Grogu shook his head slowly. He whimpered and got more and more dizzy. “Something's very wrong here.” Cara acknowledged and turned to the group again. “We need to move fast.” Bo-Katan stated and put her helmet on, followed by her clanmates. 

The rebel trooper got out of the speeder and took a look around. There was no visible way into the building, which was surrounded by the lava lake. It was built into a cliff, which had hidden this facility from curious eyes, the only part visible was a round platform about 160 ft above them. In addition, there was quite a haze and smoke around here. Cara grabbed her binoculars to check the surroundings. Suddenly, she noticed someone was on the platform. “Look!” she said and pointed her finger upwards. “Who is there? There’s so much smoke, I can’t see.” Bo-Katan said and tapped on her helmet to improve her vision. 

Cara went closer and adjusted her binoculars, watching the person climbing over the railing. Grogu suddenly looked up and squeaked, like he was in pain. “What is it little one?” Karga asked worriedly and picked the child from his seat. But all of the sudden, Cara yelled, “He jumped! It’s Din!”


	12. Chapter 12

“Axe, Koska catch him!” Bo-Katan ordered and the two mandalorians ignited their Jetpacks. Din was barely conscious as he fell, he just felt the heat on his back was getting closer and he closed his eyes. Death would be quick, he thought, but suddenly, he felt someone grabbing his waist. “Easy, Mando. We’ve got you.” Koska said but she instantly realized that Din was in a bad way. Axe had slipped his arms under Mando’s armpits and Koska held his legs. But when she touched his broken shin, Din yelled in pain. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry…” she stuttered. 

Carefully, they flew back to the others, gently easing him on the ground. Cara felt her throat was cut off by the sight of his horrendous condition. “Din….” the shock trooper gasped as she approached his prone body. Suddenly, shots were fired at them. “Cara, take care of him!” Bo said and readied herself for battle. The shots were fired from Paz, who was circling above them with his jetpack. “Paz Vizsla!” Bo-Katan growled and started firing back. Her fellow mandalorians joined their fight, leaving Cara and Grogu behind. 

Meanwhile, Cara tried to figure out how to help Din. “Don’t worry, buddy. You’re gonna be alright.” she mumbled nervously as she cradled his torso in her arms. Din couldn’t answer, blood was dripping from the corner of his mouth and the wound on his belly leaked even more. Grogu just stood there, frozen in shock. He jumped out of the speeder and waddled to Cara. “Grogu…. it’s alright. We’re gonna get him help. Don’t worry….” she stammered, barley convincing herself. 

The Kid’s ears dropped, his tiny hand reaching for Din to touch his arm. “There you are….” they suddenly heard a voice from behind. Quickly, Cara and Grogu turned around, seeing Gideon was standing there with his Darksaber in his hands. “Well, we didn’t get him to tell us the location of the child and now, his oh so faithful allies just brought him here.” he chuckled and approached them. “Get away!” Cara hissed and drew her blaster. But suddenly, she felt something was wrong with Din. He laid still in her arms, too still. “No….” the shock trooper whispered and pushed her fingers on his neck, confirming what she had suspected. “No, no, no….. Din don’t do this to me.” she said, slightly panicking. 

Without any hesitation, she put her blaster aside and started giving Din chest compressions, although Gideon was standing right in front of them with his deathly weapon. “Seems like Djarin has finally passed away…” Gideon chuckled and bent down to the child, who was forced to watch Cara desperately trying to pump his father’s heart manually. Carefully, he tilted his head back, pinched his nose and gave him some rescue breaths. It was traumatic to watch for the child. More and more blood seeped from the gash on his belly and the former shock troopers hands were already coated in his blood. 

“I can save him…” Gideon whispered softly and offered his hand to Grogu. “Just come with me…” he teased and edged closer to the kid. “Grogu, don’t!” Cara yelled in between pumping Din’s heart and giving him rescue breaths. She felt so helpless, fighting Gideon would be Din’s death and keeping him alive would be Gideon’s triumph when he gets his hands on Grogu. It was a horrible dilemma. “Grogu, I can save his life. Why do you hesitate?” Moff Gideon said again, his voice growing urgent. He knew about the Kid’s powers and even he had no chance against the force. 

Seconds turned into minutes and Cara gradually lost her composure. Tears dripped from her eyes as she started another, probably unsuccessful round of compressions. She felt a rib cracking when she pressed down, but not even the pain of a broken bone made him stir. Grogus tears already started to soak his collar, the feeling of loss was breaking his heart, breaking his will. But in return, it fed something deep inside him. Anger and fear. “Yes, Grogu let your feelings flow” Gideon whispered as he noticed the kid’s struggle. “Take my hand, Grogu”

The kid’s head shot up as he saw his hand right in front of him. Grogu was so confused, he couldn’t use his powers, but there was something inside of him, which consumed his mind more and more. His little hand twitched and slowly raised. Gideon put a fake smile on his face as he knew, he was about to gain the kid’s trust. “No Grogu, don’t trust him!” Cara yelled again slowly stopping performing CPR. Her hands grabbed the blood soaked fabric on Din’s chest as she broke down in tears. “Come, Grogu….” Gideon whispered but suddenly he felt a hot pain in his chest. 

Everyone was frozen in shock as the Moff’s hand dropped to his side, his features petrified. Suddenly, Cara felt Din’s chest was heaving beneath her hand. “Din…. ?” she gasped as she saw him lying on his side with Cara’s blaster in his hands, still aiming at Gideon. “Get ....away from my…. child” the mandalorian gasped almost blacking out again. The ISB Officer put a grin on his face, blood was dripping from the corner of his mouth, his shaky hand grabbed the hilt of the Darksaber. 

Grogu backed up as he ignited the black blade and stumbled on Din’s body. Slowly, Gideon rose from the ground, blood was seeping from his chest, he knew he was possibly going to die, but he wanted to take someone with him. “Grogu…” Din mumbled and pulled the kid close as he pressed himself on the mandalorians body. Gideon raised the sword for the final strike and Din used the last bit of energy he had, to shield Cara and Grogu from the hit. But before the blade rushed down to slash the mandalorians body, a shot was fired, causing Gideon to fall backwards. 

“Don’t you dare!” Bo-Katan screamed as she kicked the moff away from the three, slamming his body to the ground, the Darksaber falling onto the dusty ground. The other two mandalorians arrived seconds after Bo, Axe with Paz’s helmet in his hands. “Sorry, we couldn’t help you.” the heiress apologized as he bent down to put shackles on Gideons wrists. After she and the others took him into custody, she turned to Din, Cara and Grogu. 

“How is he?” she asked quickly and threw a worried glance over Din’s prone form. “He’s alive….” Cara whispered because she couldn’t assess his true condition. “Alright, Cara, I need you to bring Gideon as a prisoner back to Nevarro, Karga should make contact with the New Republic. We’re gonna take care of Din…” Bo-Katan said and the rebel trooper nodded. 

Cara got up from the ground, her hands still coated in Din’s blood. Axe and Koska helped to get Gideon onto the speeder. “I’ll be quick, wait for me.” Cara said and Bo-Katan nodded. “Axe, Koska, fly back to Nevarro and get our ship. I’m going to wait here.” the heiress ordered and both mandalorians ignited their jetpacks. “See you later,” Bo said and turned to Din, who laid unconscious on the ground. Her features hardened as she inspected his wounds. Grogu watched her closely. “Your father is a good man, kid. You can be proud of him.” she said, but the child’s ears lowered. 

“Hey, I promise he’s going to be okay. You hear me? You have my word.” she promised Grogu, but his tears didn’t stop rolling down his face. Bo-Katan sighed and her attention was drawn to the metal hilt, which was still lying on the dusty ground. She grabbed it and let her fingers run over the shiny steel. She was relieved to have her weapon back, but the prospect of Din’s possible death suppressed her joy. She had known Paz Vizsla and she suspected him to have done horrible things to Mando. 

Twenty minutes later, Koska and Axe arrived with their freighter ship. Carefully, they carried Din into the medbay. Cara returned another fifteen minutes later after she had dropped Gideon at Karga’s office, who locked him into their only cell. Now he was waiting for further instructions from the New Republic. 

Cara's stomach dropped as she entered the med bay. They'd just brought him here, hooked him up on a ventilator and an IV of high dose painkillers. Bo-Katan went to her and told her the bad news. "We can't take him back to Nevarro. He needs more intensive care and a bacta tank." she said and gave Cara a comforting pat on her shoulder. 

Cara knew he was in a bad way, but she hoped to hear better news. Grogu was at his father's side, leaning his head against Din's temple, slowly stroking his cheek. The child's features were devastating, his little face portrayed pure pain and fear. The shock trooper turned to the female mandalorian again. “What did they do to him?” she asked and held her breath.

Bo sighed and looked at her boots. “Well, as far as we can determine by the simple med scan we’d just run, he was definitely tortured, the cuts on his chest were apparently caused by a laced blade. It was a very common way to torture back in the ancient mandalorian ways. The poison prevents the body from healing and the blood from coagulating, so the victim bleeds freely. In addition it attacks the autonomic nervous system, causing cardiac arrests and trouble breathing. Furthermore, his left leg and a rib are broken…. he’s in a bad way and it’s hard to say, if he’s gonna make it.” Bo-Katan explained and the rebel trooper felt herself becoming slightly dizzy. 

“Are you okay?” Bo asked as Cara’s face turned white. “Y-Yes… I’m fine.” she replied and turned away from her. Slowly the Marshal walked at Din’s cot, his pale complexion and a desperate Grogu, who gently stroked his fathers cheek, broke her heart. Cautiously, she sat down on the edge, watching the slow rise and fall of his chest. Din’s face was white as a bedsheet and some small groans escaped his slightly parted lips underneath the oxygen mask. Carefully, Cara lifted the blood stained wound dressing and gasped at the bloody mess, which once was Din’s chest. 

Cara felt herself tearing up a little as she read the word ‘traitor’, which was carved into his skin. It was still bleeding and some small drops ran down to his stomach. The rebel trooper grabbed a bacta wipe and started to clean the wounds, but the bleeding didn’t seem to stop. In addition to that, she heard him gasping every time she touched him. Grogu watched her with wet eyes, he was so tired. The kid wanted to heal his father so badly, but the constant fear of losing him blocked his powers again. So he remained leaning against Din’s temples, stroking his hair and cheek and Cara could have sworn, he was whispering something into his ear.

The rebel trooper acknowledged he would need a huge amount of bacta, as Bo-Katan said in a tank, but here on this ship, their resources were quite limited. She grabbed her own medpack, which she had on her belt. But there was only a bacta gel and some bandages. She grabbed the small can and opened it. Grogu’s ears perked up as he watched her. “I want to try it at least, it won’t harm him” Cara explained and scooped a blob of the bacta gel on her finger. Carefully, she applied it on Din’s chest, spreading it gently with her palm. Cara felt him flinching underneath her touch and his heart rate picked up pace. But she put another blob onto his wounds and gently rubbed it into his skin. The shock trooper knew, the ointment had a numbing effect and she had no idea if she had just imagined, but he seemed to relax to her touch. 

“Din, can you hear me?” Cara whispered and bent over him to see his face. His eyes slightly opened but shut almost immediately again. “C-Cara…. I….” the breathed but she shushed him. “Don’t talk, it’s alright, you are safe.” she reassured him, but the tears in her eyes spoke another language. She pulled her hand away, which was resting on his stomach, but suddenly, he grabbed hers and put it back, covering her hand with his. “Shh, it’s okay.” Cara whispered, gently stroking his belly with her thumb. Din had never been on the touchy side, but right now, it was the only thing that calmed him and kept him from slipping into the afterlife.


	13. Chapter 13

Cara looked up suddenly as the ship started moving. She bent over Din and rubbed his arm. “I’m gonna be right back.” she said and got up from the bed. Grogu cooed sadly and snuggled back on his father again. Quickly, the shock trooper rushed into the cockpit. “Hey, where are we going?” Bo-Katan turned to her with a concerned expression on her face. “I just wanted to inform you, but we have decided to take Din Djarin to a hospital at Coruscant. They have the best medical care in the galaxy and are hopefully capable of treating him appropriately.” the female Mandalorian explained and turned briefly to Koska, who confirmed the coordinates. 

“Are you sure, they can help him?” Cara asked, worried about, if Din would even make it through this long trip to the core worlds. “He has to, it’s his only chance. The venom, his wound has been poisoned with, is highly aggressive. He needs the best care, he can get. I won’t leave him to his fate.” Bo-Katan stated and turned to her comrades again. Cara nodded approvingly and returned to the med bay. 

Din’s condition hasn’t changed a bit, he seemed to be asleep again. Cara knew it would take about 10 hours for them to arrive at Coruscant. She was tired, but she was afraid to fall asleep. She sat down on a cot in the opposite of the mandalorians bed and crossed her arms over her chest. Suddenly, Bo-Katan joined them to look after Din. “How is he? Any change?” she asked and turned to the Marshal. “No, he’s sleeping and still bleeding.” Cara replied.

“Dank Farrik. Paz’ torture was quite extensively. Damn the old way!” the female Mandalorian cursed and pinched the bridge of her nose with her fingers. “What did he do to him exactly?” Cara further asked and leaned back on the wall. “I don’t know exactly how it’s made, even when I was in Deathwatch we kept distance from such ways. It was even forbidden to talk about it, I just heard stories. But it appears in Din’s old covert, they’re still using it. The cruelty to use it on a living being is inhumane. The victim is not supposed to survive, even if it tells the truth. They slowly bleed out, while your nervous system gets slowly destroyed. He was lucky, we have found him in such an early state, so he has a chance.” Bo-Katan explained and took a look at her fallen mandalorian brother. 

“What happened to this guy, who did this to him. Paz was his name right?” the Marshal asked and Bo turned to her. “We killed him. Death is to those, who are capable of using such atrocious methods on another living being. This is mandalorian law. We keep the helmet and return it to his tribe, showing the disgrace to his clanmates. There’s no greater dishonor, he will not be mourned. This is the way” Bo-Katan said and turned to Din again.

“You have to keep fighting. For your son and for you friends. Cuyir kovid, vod” she whispered and placed her hand on his arm briefly. The heavy rock of sorrow in Cara’s stomach had just become heavier. The female mandalorian left again and silence hung over the med bay again. Cara actually lost the fight against her exhaustion and nodded off. 

Grogu stayed at Din’s side the whole time, snuggling on him and stroking his cheek. The child was tired and scared and it drained him. He went through a lot his whole life, but he never felt so heart broken like this. The only person he has ever loved and cared about was dying in his small arms and there was nothing he could do about it. His powers were blocked by his fears and Grogu had no idea how to regain them. 

But suddenly, he heard a low groan from his father. It was the first time since he's been on the ship now that Din was fully conscious. Slowly he opened his eyes, looking into a pair of huge, brown, wet eyes. Grogu was lying close to his face, watching over him. The Child cooed softly and stretched his arm to touch Din's cheek. 

But even the task of keeping his eyes open was almost too much for the mandalorian to handle. He felt Grogu edged closer, putting his forehead on his father’s. "Grogu……." Din took a deep shaky breath and put all of his strength just to speak a few words. "I-I want…. I want you to know that….. I-I love you. I love you…. So Much, Kid." Din slowly breathed out, his eyes shut at the same time. Little tears formed in the corner of his eyes as he slipped back into unconsciousness again. 

“Dada!” the kid cried as Din’s eyes shut again. Cara awoke to a heart wrenching sobbing. She felt her heart rate was picking up pace and she got up, checking on the mandalorian. He was still alive, but she found Grogu, curled up into a shivering, crying, ball, who pressed his tiny hands over his eyes. Tears were seeping through his fingers. Cara picked him up and held him close to her chest to soothe him. “It’s going to be alright…. He’ll be fine….” she whispered, failing to hold her tears back as she held the weeping kid. 

A few hours later, they finally arrived at Coruscant. Cara and the kid were able to sleep a bit at least. Her eyes felt dry and swollen as she looked over the numerous lights beneath them. It was sunset on Coruscant and the city lights were as bright as the sunlight. Cara was amazed by its beauty, but she knew she had other things to worry about. “Guys, we are landing in 10 minutes.” they heard Axe Woves through the speaker. The Marshal went to Din’s cot and tucked a blanket around his shivering form, so he could easily be transported. 

They docked on the hospital's deck. Bo-Katan left the ramp to talk to the approaching team of healers. The man in white briefly nodded and ordered the rest of the staff to bring a gurney. Cara felt so detached from the world as she watched the healers lifting Din’s body from the cot and carried him out of the med bay. They left the ship and the marshal inhaled a deep breath of Coruscant's fresh air. It was still summery warm outside, although the sun was almost gone. Grogu slowly realized where he actually was. He knew this city very well. The air, the noises, the atmosphere, everything felt so familiar. But he couldn’t care about that now. 

They watched Din and he healers entering the hospital and Bo-Katan turned to them. “So it’s all up to the medical staff here. They are the best, but the doctor told me, his chances aren’t good. We’re gonna have to wait for the results of the check up, then they have a better look at his prospects.” she explained and went ahead. Cara just nodded, she had heard the female mandalorians words, but her brain needed a bit to process them. With Grogu snuggled on her chest, she made her way into the huge medical complex.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Cuyir kovid, vod" -- Be strong, brother.


	14. Chapter 14

They followed the mandalorians into a waiting area and sat down. Din was transported into an emergency room, where he got checked out. And it felt like hours passed until the door opened again and one of the healers stepped out with a clipboard in his hands. Cara got up. “How is he, doc?” she asked without hesitation, but the doctor’s expression made her anxious. “Well, he’s been admitted to surgery now. You’ve just brought him here in time, so he has at least a chance.” the doc said and his glance fell back on his clipboard again. “A chance?” Cara breathed in disbelief and the healer nodded slowly. 

“I’m afraid to tell you that we’re dealing with a kind of venom, which was designed not to be identified to create an antidote. It has been absorbed by his cells now and is raging through his system. His body has to fight it itself now. In addition to that, he has further serious injuries, which we are fixing right now in the operation room. The problem is, we need to keep the incisions as small as possible because, as you already know, the poison stops his blood from coagulating, so any new kind of wound, no matter what size, could kill him. I’m sorry, I have no brighter news to tell you. I’m gonna inform you, when he’s out of surgery.” with those words, the doctor walked away. 

Cara felt her knees were getting weak, this felt like a punch in the gut. Suddenly, Bo-Katan put her hand on her shoulder. “Come, we’re getting something to eat. Would you join us?” she asked and the Marshal nodded, assuming the kid would be hungry. And so, they went to the hospital’s cantina, but actually, no one felt like eating, not even Grogu. So they all sat in silence around the table with only some cups of tea in front of them and it felt like hours until Bo-Katan finally spoke. “What are you going to do with him, if….” Bo asked Cara and caught her totally off guard. “W-What?” she stammered. “What are you going to do with this little one, if Din doesn’t make it.” Bo-Katan repeated. “That’s out of the question, he’s gonna make it. He has to……” the Marshal replied, trying to sound as confident as possible. 

But the female mandalorian just shook her head. “Don’t you think it’s time to consider a plan B?” she continued but Cara just slammed her palm on the table to silence her. “No, he is going to be okay. He always is. Stop talking about that!” she hissed and gave her an angry glance. The former shock trooper knew she was right, but she was not ready to accept the possible death of her best friend. “Cara, I know it’s hard, but you know what the doc said. You need to be realistic.” Bo said dryly but suddenly, the Marshal got up from her chair, looking like she wanted to throw a punch at the mandalorian. 

The only thing that calmed her immediately was the sudden appearance of another doctor. He was quite taken aback by the shock troopers belligerent stance and cleared his throat. “The patient Din Djarin is in recovery now. If you wish, you can visit him, but only two people at a time.” 

“How is he?” Cara asked quickly and clenched her fists. She knew she couldn’t bear any bad news anymore. “Well, the surgery was successful, but I can’t go into details here now. Follow me, if you like to visit him” the doctor said and turned around, ready to leave the cantina. The Marshal turned around, looking at the mandalorians. Bo gave her an encouraging smile and told her to leave with Grogu. So she picked up the kid and followed the healer down to the recovery rooms. But before they could visit Din, they were introduced to another healer. 

“You belong to Din Djarin?” he asked, while he turned the page on his clipboard. “Yes, he’s my best friend and this little one here is his adopted son.” Cara explained. “Very well, so as my co-worker has informed you, the surgery was a success, but not without complications….” he started, but Cara cut him off. “Complications?” she asked and felt her pulse was picking up pace. “Yes, unfortunately he crashed two times, but we were able to revive him, so there is no damage to be expected. Anyway, we fixed his broken leg, patched up the gash on his stomach and we tried to apply some artificial tissue on the wound on his chest, to staunch the bleeding, unfortunately he’s still bleeding through. He’s now down to only 60% of his total blood volume.” he explained and Cara took a deep breath.

“So what now? Just keep on waiting until he gets better?” she asked, but the doc shook his head. “No, as soon as he’s out of the recovery in a few hours, he’ll receive a bacta tank treatment and transfusions, unfortunately, we have to put him into a coma for that.”  
“Is he awake now?” Cara interrupted and the healer sighed. “No, he’s still unconscious, but we can wake him up, if you want to talk to him before he’s going into a coma.” the doc said, but in her mind the Marshal put the words’ if you want to say goodbye’ at the end of his sentence. “N-No, let him… let him sleep. I think it’s the best for him, if he… nevermind” she stammered and an uncomfortable silence followed her words. 

“He has lost almost half of his blood?” the shock trooper concluded, which was confirmed by a slow nod from the doc. Cara got goosebumps all over her body and followed him down the hallway. Grogu was still the whole time, he was so confused and so anxious. This place here made him nervous, because he clearly sensed the present of death. He just wanted to be with his father again, so badly, his belly actually hurt. In addition, he noticed Cara’s struggle, what scared him even more. But now she was the only person now, who anchored him a little. 

As soon as they entered the recovery, Cara started to feel even more uncomfortable by all the medical machines, tubes and the constant smell of sanitizer. There was only one bed, shielded from curious eyes with a white curtain. When the doc opened it, they finally saw him. The marshal felt her heart skipping some beats because he literally looked dead. His face was white like the pillow under his head, a tube was protruding from his lips, he was attached to numerous lines and wires and the mechanical rise and fall of his bandaged chest gave her chills. 

Grogu instantly tried to wiggle out of her grasp, but Cara held him down. “No, Grogu.” she admonished him and the child started sobbing quietly. A nurse droid beside Din kept pressing the cold end of a stethoscope against his chest. “I’m gonna give you some privacy now” the doctor said and left along with the droid. The shock trooper pulled a stool closer and sat down, with the kid on her lap. Shaking, she reached for Din’s hand and was startled by the coolness of his skin. 

“You need to fight, Din. You can just leave us here. Your son needs you…. I need you…” she whispered and rubbed small circles on the back of his hand with her thumb. Grogu squeaked and pointed to Mando’s bed, but Cara understood. “Be careful…” she said and put the kid next to the mandalorians pillow. The little one carefully edged closer, running through Din’s dark hair with his tiny hand. The room was silent except for the beeping of the heart monitor and the clicking of the ventilator. An hour later, the doctor joined them again and told them that they’re going to start the preparation for the bacta tank now. 

“How long is he going to be in there?” the shock trooper asked. “We’ll start with three days and then we’ll see how his progress will be. But you can visit him anytime.” the healer said and left Cara and Grogu, to attend the preparation. They returned into the waiting area, where Bo-Katan and the others were sitting in silence. At the sight of the Bo, Cara was getting a guilty conscience. She watched her getting up, walking toward them. “Bo I’m sorry, for what I did in the cantina.” the Marshal stammered, but the mandalorian just put her hand on her shoulder. “It’s alright, I know what it feels like to fear someone’s death, who is close to you. We talked to the personnel here and they managed to get you and Grogu a room at the hospital, since Din is going to be here for a while. Unfortunately, we can’t stay much longer, but you can always give us a call if you need us.” she said and smiled at the rebel trooper. 

“Thank you…” Cara mumbled and pulled her into a close hug. “Don’t mention it…” Bo-Katan said when she released her. After they left, Cara and the little one went into their sleeping quarters, it only had a bathroom, bed, a chair and a small coffee table. The Marshal went to the huge window facade, watching the lights of the city. It was late at night, when she finally decided to go to sleep. Grogu had already curled up in the bed, but when she joined him, his head shot up. “Sorry, didn’t mean to wake you, little one.” she whispered and stroked the kid’s fuzzy head. But the kid just lowered his ears in sadness. 

He came closer, but Cara hesitated for a moment and looked into the big, brown, wet eyes. She sighed and curled her arm around him, allowing the kid to snuggle closer. It felt so weird for her at first to have such a small creature cuddling up to her, but soon, she actually liked it. Grogu let out a soft purr and snuggled his head on her shoulder. “It’s okay, little one. I know, I would never be a substitute for your father, but I’m doing my best.” she whispered and stroked the kid’s cheek.


	15. Chapter 15

When they visited Din the next day, he was already in a Bacta Tank. Only wearing black briefs, he floated in the clear fluid. The light of the tank gave him an even more dead look. His face was covered by an oxygen mask and numerous wires and electrodes were attached to his chest. His dark hair waved softly in the liquid. Grogu felt devastated, his father was so close but yet so far, he pressed his tiny hand against the glass of the tank, trying to reach him. 

“Don’t worry, Grogu, he’s still with us.” Cara said and picked him up. The kid squeaked and tried to wiggle out of her grasp. He started to cry when the shock trooper turned away from the tank. “Dada!” the kid screamed and bit her arm, so she dropped him. “Grogu, no!” the marshal yelled and tried to catch him, while he waddled toward the tank again. But when Cara tried to pick him up again, Grogu narrowed his eyes and let out an alarming growl. “Grogu, listen. You can’t do anything for him now. You just need to wait, don’t think this whole situation is easy for me too. I know, you are suffering, I suffer too. But we can’t do anything right now” she explained, desperately trying to soothe the upset kid. 

One of the healers appeared behind them suddenly. “Everything ok here?” he asked. Cara nodded. “Yeah, the little guy here wants to be with his father so badly” she explained and looked at Grogu. “I understand, I suppose it's hard for a kid to see his father like this. But don’t worry, he’s receiving the best care we can offer.” the healer stated. Grogu lowered his ears and Cara carried him out of the room. 

The next two days were all the same. The shock trooper and the child spent hours at Din’s side. He didn’t do any better. All the blood, he got transfused with seemed to seep right through his wounds again. The poison was still actively destroying his nervous system and preventing his wounds from healing. The doctors only talked to Cara in private, trying not to scare the child, but Grogu knew. He felt his father was fading fast and there was nothing he could do about it. 

The kid gradually began blaming himself for his condition, because he was still not able to heal him. But his mind blocked itself, he was so afraid. Constantly, he was seeing Din’s dead body in his dreams, it was haunting him every night. Cara had no idea how to help the child. One sunny afternoon, while Din was in treatment, she decided to take Grogu on a stroll through the city. What she didn't know is that the little one had grown up here in the Jedi Temple many years ago. 

The temple, suddenly, Grogu had the urge to visit it again. Although it was abandoned and no one lived there anymore. But the kid hoped to find a new connection to the force there again. That was his only hope. He and Cara were strolling around the streets until the huge building came in sight. Unfortunately the marshal turned into another street, so Grogu had to squeak and point to its direction. “That's the abandoned Jedi Temple of Coruscant, Grogu. A tragic massacre happened there once. All of the younglings were killed by Anakin Skywalker, who had turned to the dark side and became Darth Vader afterwards. Why do you want to visit this place so badly?” Cara explained, but the kid was still frantically pointing in the temple’s direction. 

Dune sighed and they made their way to the building. As they came closer, Grogu saw memories popping in front of his inner eye. He remembered all of his friends and the masters, who had trained him. He couldn’t actually remember how he was taken from the temple, that was still an unresolved mystery in his head. But still, he felt the connection to his former home more and more again. 

A few minutes later, they stood on the temple’s plaza in front of the huge entrance hall. Cara placed the kid on the ground “See? No one is here. No one wants to be in a place where so many people got killed, Grogu.” she said reverently. But the kid just ignored her for now. He felt something, like someone was calling him. Grogu felt the presence of many deceased souls and grief grabbed his little heart. 

“Back you came?” he heard a voice behind him, but when the kid turned around, no one was there. Grogu took a deep breath and waddled towards the entrance. The last rays of the sun were grazing the stairs and painted them in a warm orange light. He sat down half the way upstairs, now he felt the force even more. Like something was awakening inside him again. But when the images of Din, lying cold and pale in front of him, his senses felt like blocked again. “Save him, you can” Grogu heard a voice beside him and when he turned to his left, a very much older version of himself was standing beside him. But only a shadow of it. “Grogu… remember me you can?” Yoda asked the confused kid, but the kid slowly remembered seeing him around the temple back then, when he was there. 

“Hmmm I see why you came here. And maybe help you I can” he said and Grogu’s ears perked up. Cara was confused as she watched the child, it looked like he was having a conversation without moving his lips. Curious, she just watched him. Grogu reached his tiny hand at Yoda, who touched it with his finger. “Ah, ah, I see. In danger your father is. And your abilities are blocked. But no reason to be afraid there is.” Yoda instructed the kid. He told him to meditate and Grogu shifted to a sitting position. “Prioritizing your focus you must. Blocking the images of your dying father. The force you must only feel.” Yoda told him, but Grogu struggled to get the thoughts of his father dying out of his mind. “Harder you must try, Grogu. You’ll only be able to save him, if your connection to the force is restored.” Grogu squeezed his eyes shut, his heart was pounding in his ears. 

But suddenly, he felt Master Yoda was helping him. The vision of Din was getting more blurry in his mind. “Good, good….” the Jedi Master said, what encouraged the kid to keep on trying. Suddenly, Cara stood right in front of him. “Okay, it’s getting late. Let’s go back.” she said and bent down to pick the child up. But Grogu knew, he couldn’t stop now since he felt his fears started to loosen a bit. Fortunately, Force-ghost Yoda erected a force shield around them. “What the…?” Cara exclaimed, confused as she was pushed back by the shield. 

Now, the kid was able to focus again. But when he got back to focus, he felt the feeling of being afraid was getting more and more numb and a pleasurable warmth spread in his heart, like a little flame, that was lit anew. “Able to save him you are now. Protect your father, you must.” Yoda said and patted the kid on the shoulder. Grogu opened his eyes again and took some deep breaths. He felt a little tired, but not like usual when he used his powers. 

Suddenly, he felt Cara picking him up. “Grogu, what was that?” she asked and the kid blinked at her tiredly. Sadly, the marshal was not able to understand him like Din did. Although the little one was not able to talk yet, his father understood him, they had their special connection. “Okay, you’re done with whatever you were doing?” she asked and the child nodded at her. 

They made their way back to the hospital, but Grogu sensed something was wrong. It was not the fear, which was bugging him again, it was something else he felt. Something more intense, some kind of grief and worry. Cara noticed, the kid was becoming uneasy and concerned when she entered the entrance of the large medical complex. “Okay, it’s late. Let's take a look after Din and then get back into our room to catch some sleep.” the shock trooper said and pushed the button on the elevator door for the right floor. 

When they arrived, they saw one of Din’s healers running at them. Cara gave him a confused glance. “There you are….” the doctor panted. The kid’s and the shock trooper’s stomach dropped. “Is something wrong?” she asked and held her breath. “I’m sorry to have some bad news for you. The mandalorian suffered a cardiac arrest in the bacta tank, so we were forced to take him out to revive him……” the medic explained. “He is alive right?” Cara urged and her grip around the kid’s waist tightened. “Yes, he is. But we have his latest blood test results. His thrombocytes are almost nonexistent anymore, the poison has started to destroy his bone marrow. This also affects his ability to produce enough leukocytes to fight infections, so we were forced to bring him into a special room, so he won’t have contact with any germs and viruses. Soon won’t be able to supply him with enough blood to compensate for the constant loss….. Ms. Dune, I think you should consider saying goodbye to him.” the healer explained and Cara suddenly felt sick. 

Her face turned white and she had to prop herself on the wall for a second. The doc offered her a chair to sit down for a moment. “Can we see him?” she asked, but the doc shook his head. “I’m afraid I can’t allow any visits right now. My team is still working to get him stabilized and there will be many adjustments to his medication, to improve his immune system. If he makes it through the night, you can visit him tomorrow. I recommend you to get sleep. I’m sorry not to have any better news.” the healer patted Cara’s shoulder and went back into his office. 

The floor was quiet suddenly, no one was here. Dune got up from the chair, her legs were shaking. “Grogu….. let’s get back. We can visit him tomorrow.” she stuttered and tried to fake a smile. But she didn’t know that the kid had understood every word, the doctor was saying, he just felt it. Grogu knew he couldn’t wiggle out of Cara’s grasp right now, so he had to wait for her to fall asleep to get to see his father. The kid knew, he was the only one, who was able to save Din now.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter here, it was quite a ride. Sorry for not updating for a few days, but I needed some time off and it was my birthday. But I'd like to thank everyone, who supported the story, I had so much fun to write it. I hope you're gonna enjoy the ending. 🥰

Grogu was getting so nervous, because he was forced to wait until Cara was asleep. Fortunately, she dozed off past midnight, so he took his chance. Silent as a wisp, he snuck out of the bed and waddled to the door, unlocking it with his powers. At night, the hospital looked so incredibly spooky, but the little one tried to push those thoughts aside for now, but still, he winced at every noise he heard. Cautiously, he made his way through the empty hallways until he finally reached the corridor, where he felt Din’s presence the most. 

Grogu took another look around, to make sure he was alone, but suddenly, one of the healers came out of an office and almost ran into the child. Quickly, the little one jumped underneath a nearby table, hiding from the doctor. He couldn’t risk getting caught now. But suddenly, the doctor’s voice popped up in his head. “He’s not stable enough to have any visitor, any minor infection would possibly kill him.” Grogu balled his hands into fists, doubts swept over him. 

“Young Padawan, believe in yourself you must. His only chance you are.” he suddenly heard Master Yoda’s voice and Grogus ears perked up. He turned around, just to see the bluish figure standing right behind him. He smiled encouragingly and the kid nodded back. The kid made a choice and with a low click of the door lock, it sprung open wide enough for Grogu to squeeze through it. But what he saw next would be carved into the kid’s mind forever. 

Behind a transparent plastic curtain, he finally found his father, or more like a figure, that looked like his father. Grogu pushed his hands on his mouth to suppress a loud gasp, never before he had seen someone looking so less alive before. Cautiously, the little one dared to come closer. It was deadly silent, apart from the beeping heart monitor and other numerous machines, which kept Din alive. 

Grogu grabbed the edge of a sheet and pulled himself up on the bed. It broke the kid’s heart seeing his father like this. His face was white as the wall with deep, dark shadows around his eyes. Din looked like he had lost half of his weight within a few days. His cheeks looked hollow and his cheekbones looked way more prominent than before, the rest of his face was covered by an oxygen mask. Grogu edged closer and put his tiny hand on his father’s, which rested on his stomach, he could almost see every vein and tendon through his greyish skin. A blanket was draped just over his stomach, so the little one noticed almost every single rib protruding from his torso. His chest was loosely covered with a white gauze pad. But what scared Grogu the most was the purplish vein pattern, which seemed to expand from Mando’s chest to his neck and arms. The poison was also visibly raging through his body, the kid acknowledged. 

Carefully, the kid crawled on Din’s stomach and closed his eyes. He desperately tried to connect with his mind, but Djarin’s consciousness was far, far away. “Papa….” the little one whispered sadly and touched the deathly, cold skin of Din’s body. But as expected, there was no reaction. Clumsily, the kid bent over him and lifted the white pad from Din’s chest. It was soaked and stuck on his skin, but when he finally was able to take a look underneath, the kid shivered. His wounds were not only still bleeding, there was a purple-blackish liquid oozing from the cuts, which hadn’t healed a bit despite the time and all the treatments he had received here.

The little one took a deep breath and hovered his hand over his father’s chest, trying to reach out for the force, but all he sensed was pain, indescribable excruciating pain. Although he was unconscious, Din suffered in agony. Tears filled the kid’s eyes, but he knew, he had to focus now. Putting both hands on his father’s chest, he tried to gather all of his strength now. 

“Your only chance this ist, young Padawan” Yoda’s voice sounded in Grogu’s ears. Suddenly, the heart monitor started beeping faster and the kid felt even more stressed. At first, he thought his efforts were in vain, but gradually, he noticed the wound started to close again. But it didn’t seem to be enough. The kid’s claws dug into Din’s skin and Grogu let out a loud groan. It felt like his head was going to burst and he was afraid that his powers might be not enough. He felt Din was getting weaker. Shallow breaths were becoming more frequently and the kid was getting more and more desperate. 

“Do it or do not, there is no try” he heard Yoda’s voice again. Grogu started to squeak and tears were running down on his face. “Believe in yourself, you must. You can…..” Yoda’s voice was suddenly cut off. The wound beneath his hand finally stitched itself together and the purple veins disappeared from Din’s skin. Panting, the kid collapsed on his father’s chest, his little heart was racing. It took a few minutes for him to recover so he was able to move again. He pushed himself up and looked at the reddish scars beneath his fingers. But all the blood was gone and the wounds were healed. 

Grogu focused again, feeling Din’s breathing was getting stronger, but also he felt that he had lost his connection to the force completely, like it had never been there. Exhausted, the kid crawled up to Mando's neck, snuggling his head underneath his chin. He was alive, that was what mattered most to him now. The kid dared to let out a relieved sigh, but gradually, he felt his eyelids drop.

His body felt heavy and his limbs like lead. He was so tired. The kid rested his hand on Din’s collar bone, feeling the cold skin gradually become a little warmer under his touch. He remembered, his father often had held him close to keep him warm, now it was Grogu’s turn. With his last strength, he pulled the blanket over Din’s chest and covered him and himself with it. Grogu snuggled closer again, feeling the soft beats of Djarin’s heart underneath him. His eyes closed slowly, unable to resist, he fell into a deep slumber. 

And he didn’t wake for three days. In the morning after, Cara was freaking out, when she found out Grogu was gone in the morning. Quickly, she got dressed and sprinted to Din’s room, just to find a group of healers standing around the mandalorian’s hospital bed. At first, the Marshal feared the worst, but then, one of the doctor’s told her that Din’s fatal wound had healed overnight. It was a miracle to them, but Cara suspected it was Grogu’s work. And she was right, of course. 

When she stepped closer to the bed, she found the kid, sleeping on his father’s chest, cozily wrapped in the blanket. It elicited a warm smile across her face and she had trouble holding back her tears. “Marshal Dune? We have no scientific approved explanation for what happened last night, but it saved his life. He and his son are resting now, unfortunately his leg is still broken, but with proper rehab, he’ll be able to walk again in a few months. Your friend is still very weak though and we can’t tell, when he’s going to wake up again. He may be out of the woods for now, but it’s going to be a long way to recover. And there is still a chance that some nerve damage might be permanent. Only time will tell how good his prospects really are.” a healer explained and left along with his colleagues. 

Cara didn’t care for anything else but Din is alive and he’s out of the worst now. And the next two days, already showed some little improvements. “His blood test results look way better than three days ago. This is definitely good news, but now he needs time to rest. His son has been sleeping for the time he showed up in his room, they’re like inseparable and, okay this might be beyond all medical facts, it seems like the little one’s presence is helping him heal.” the healer said on the second day with a brief blink of his eye. “More than you will ever know…” Cara muttered and paid her boys a visit. 

Later that day, when Cara had left, Din finally regained consciousness after being sedated for almost a week now. He didn’t know what to feel, because his body felt like lead. He barely had any control over his muscles to move. The only thing he felt was a little warm weight on his chest, it felt so familiar. “Grogu?” Din was trying to ask, but he didn’t even have the strength to use his vocal cords. The mandalorian closed his eyes again, but this time, he didn’t feel afraid, he felt safe just because his kid was with him. 

After Din fell asleep again, Grogu rose a few hours later. Night had already fallen and it was almost dark in the hospital room, only the stars spent some decent light. The little one yawned loudly and rubbed his eyes. He couldn’t remember having been asleep for that long in his entire life. Cozily wrapped into the blanket, he dared to look up at his father’s head. The oxygen mask was missing, so he knew he was breathing without additional help now. Grogu smiled and pushed himself up, crawling up to Din’s face. His eyes were still shut tightly but even despite the darkness of the night, he looked way more healthier than before. 

The kid lifted his arm and put his tiny hand on Djarins cheek, the stubble of his beard tickled his little digits. But suddenly, the child felt Din was moving and he smiled, hoping he would wake up soon. And he did. “K-Kid?” Mando’s voice wasn’t more than a whisper, but finally a sign of life. “Papa…” Grogu chirped happily and waited for his father’s eyes to open. It took a few minutes until Din’s eyes finally fluttered open, to see the blurred shape of his kid at first. 

He felt tears were filling his eyes, when he finally was able to see clearly. “Grogu….” he whispered, lifted his arm and pulled the little green creature into a close embrace. The kid cried too and kissed his father’s cheek. “You saved me right? I saw you healing me. I don’t know if that was a dream, but I know you would, kid. I love you so much.” Din wept and kept Grogu as close as possible. 

The next weeks were pretty hard for Din. He was still recovering and soon he experienced some of the doctor’s expected nerv damages. He was barely able to move beyond his waist and the broken bone in his leg struggled to heal too. The only way for him to move around for now was a wheelchair, which he reluctantly accepted. But at least, he was finally able to leave the hospital for some relaxing strolls through the city. It was a painstakingly slow process, but when his leg was finally healed, he was able to start rehab training to strengthen and build up his muscles again. Cara and Grogu did anything for him to help him and Din had no words to appreciate their kindness. 

It took about 12 weeks for him to be finally dismissed from the hospital, but still, he needed to take things slowly. They returned to Nevarro, where he could recover at home, but even after six months, he still had some struggle with apparently permanent issues, like losing sensation in his limbs sometimes and some pain. But he was able to manage that, so he started working for the New Republic together with Cara. 

When Grogu finally learned to talk, he attended school on Nevarro. He hadn’t had any connection with the force ever since he had healed his dad and he didn’t regret or miss it. After all, they finally were able to live a happy life as father and son. 

Many years later……………….

The sun tickled Grogu’s nose and he finally woke up. Yawning, he stretched his limbs and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. A look out of the window told him that it was going to be a warm, sunny day. From afar, he heard the soft sound of the waves. When he opened his window, pleasantly, salty air streamed into his room. Grogu smile. After he got dressed, he brushed his teeth and pulled his thin, brown-grey hair up in a bun. When he looked into the mirror, he was amazed by how much he had grown over the years. It almost felt like he had grown much faster after he had lost connection to the force. 

It was a few years ago, when Din and Grogu bought this house on the beach on some small backwater planet. The mandalorian had earned and saved enough credits through the years, so they were able to lay low and live free of worries. They had managed to stay away from any imperial business so far, so they could just enjoy their life. Grogu went down the stairs and looked through the open window wall, which was facing toward the sea. He saw his father was already sitting outside in his favourite chair. 

“Morning, Dad” Grogu said and slumped down in a chair on the other side of the table. “Morning, Kid.” Din replied. His dark brown hair was now streaked with some grey strands but he still had fire in his eyes. He had spent many years, teaching the kid anything he knew about fighting, flying a ship and how to survive in the galaxy, but Grogu’s secret wish was to become a Mandalorian like his father was. 

Suddenly, Din pulled a huge brown bag from under the table. “We’re going on a trip soon, kid.” he said and lifted the mysterious bag on the table to put it in front of Grogu. “Come on, open it” Din said with a smile. The kid pulled back the zipper and shiny silver sparkled back at him. “Dad, that’s your armor.” Grogu said confused and raised his brow. “No, it’s your armor now. I’m officially retiring and I want you, my son, to wear it. Of course it has to be mended for you to fit, but I would be honored if you’d take it.” Djarin explained, but he couldn’t even finish his words as Grogu leaped at him, pulling him into a close hug and crying his eyes out. “It’s okay, it’s okay” Din laughed, struggling to hold back tears too.

He took Grogu’s hand in his and said “You’re a Mandalorian now, this is the way, Grogu”


End file.
